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Cochran,  Annie  Carter. 
Robert  Carter 


ROBERT    CARTER. 


He  was  a  good  man,  and  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost 

and  of  faith.— ^cTs  xi.  24. 

A  devout  man,  and  one  that  feared  God  with  all  his 
house,  which  gave  much  alms  to  the  people,  and  prayed  to 
God  always.  —  Acts  x.  2, 


^^^'^^ 


Robert  Carter 


i^tjs  life  auD  morfi* 


1807-1889. 


NEW    YORK: 

ANSON    D.  F.  RANDOLPH   AND    CO. 

1891. 


Copyright,  1891, 
By  Anson  D.  F.  Randolph  &  Co- 


Saiubtrsitg  ^rcss: 
John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambridge. 


This  book  is  written  for  the  friends  of  Robert 
Carter.  It  is  not  expected  that  those  who  did  not 
know  and  love  him  will  care  to  read  it ;  but  those 
who  did  will  find  in  it  a  record  written  by  feeble 
though  loving  hands,  that  may  serve  to  recall  to  them 
some  of  the  incidents  of  a  life  that  was  to  no  ordi- 
nary degree  lived  for  others. 

"  It  is  a  frail  memorial,  but  sincere  ; 
Not  scorned  in  Heaven,  though  little  noticed  here." 

A.  0.  C. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 
Pages  1-31. 


Early  Days  in  Scotland.  Birth  and  Parentage.  Desire  for  Education. 
Adventure  with  a  Dog.  Buying  Josephus.  Village  Fair.  Foster's 
Essays.  Joining  the  Church.  Anecdotes  of  his  Father.  Fireside 
Stories.  Harvesting.  Teaching  at  Fifteen.  Walk  to  Peebles.  Dr. 
Sloan's  School.  Edinburgh  University.  Professor  Pillans.  Lubienski. 
Decides  to  come  to  America. 


CHAPTER     II. 

Pages  32-49. 

Leaving  Home.  Incidents  of  the  Voj'age.  First  Day  in  New  York.  Dr. 
Griscom.  Professor  Anthon.  Hon.  Gulian  C.  Verplanck.  Dr.  Stark. 
The  Scotch  Church.  Different  Schools.  Marriage.  Entering  Business. 
Bible  the  First  Book  sold.  Resolved  against  Debt.  Consecrating  Half 
his  Income. 

•       CHAPTER    III. 

Pages  .50-76. 

Death  of  his  First-Born.  Miss  Catherine  Sinclair  Visit  to  Europe  in  1841. 
D'Aubigne's  History  of  the  Reformation.  Home's  Introduction. 
Business  Principles.  Aim  in  all  Publications.  Tribute  of  Mr.  Ran- 
dolph. Incidents  of  Western  Journeys.  Death  of  his  Father.  Board 
of  Foreign  Missions.  Hon.  Walter  Lowrie.  Mr.  William  Steel. 
Free  Church  of  Scotland. 


Viii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER    IV. 

Pages  77-105. 

Voyage  to  Europe  in  1846.  Interviews  with  Dr.  Chalmers  and  others.  "  God 
in  the  Storm."  Dr.  Lyman  Beecher.  Dr.  Thomas  De  Witt.  Bookstore 
a  Rendezvous  for  Clergymen.  Authors  his  Friends.  His  Brothers 
made  Partners.  Affectionate  Relations  between  Brothers.  Peacemak- 
ing. Visitation  of  Sick  and  Afflicted.  Story  of  Kate  Curtis.  Last 
Interview  with  Dr.  Griscom.  Mr.  Carter's  Prayers.  Testimony  of  a 
Unitarian  Friend. 

CHAPTER    V. 

Pages  106-143. 

Mr.  Samuel  Thomson.  The  Two  Mothers.  Home  Life  and  Family  Training. 
Europe  in  1854.  Enthusiastic  Traveller.  Dr.  Norman  Macleod.  Mrs. 
Lundie  Duncan.  Loss  of  the  "  Arctic."  Hospitality.  Fugitive  Slaves. 
Katy  Ferguson.  Aged  Slave  Woman  in  Charleston.  Desire  for  his 
Children's  Conversion.  Temperance  Stories.  Sharon  Springs.  Pro- 
fessor Mitchell.    Archbishop  Hughes.    Dr.  Thornwell. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Pages  144-173. 

American  Bible  Society.  Princeton  Seminary.  New  York  Sabbath  Com- 
mittee. Europe  in  1861.  Dr.  Macleod  again.  Journej-  with  Dr. 
Guthrie.  John  Brown,  M.D.  Magdalen  Asylum.  The  Queen  at 
Crathie  Church.  Professor  Mitchell.  Italy.  Archbishop  Hughes 
again.  Rome  in  1862.  Sunday  at  La  Tour.  Dr.  Cesar  Malan. 
Letters  from  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Guthrie. 

CHAPTER    Vn. 

Pages  174-197. 

Country  Parishes.  Stockbridge  and  Egremont.  Interest  in  the  Young. 
Southern  Friends.  An  Aged  Heroine.  Death  of  his  Mother.  Letters 
from  Dr.  IMcCosh.  General  Assembly  Experiences.  Ministerial  Relief. 
Peoria  and  Newark.  National  Presbvterian  Convention.  Prayer  for 
Unity.  Assembly  at  Albany.  Storj-  of  Lord  Kilmarnock.  New  York, 
Pittsburg,  and  Philadelphia. 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

Pages  198-230. 

Dr.  Cuyler.  President  Hopkins.  Dr.  Parker.  Bishop  Bickersteth.  Golden 
Wedding.  Testimonial  from  Booksellers.  Mr.  Randolph  and  Dr. 
Prime.  Dr.  MacdufE.  Deaths  of  Mr.  Cochran  and  of  Mrs.  Carter. 
Letters.    Interest  for  his  Grandchildren.    Last  Illness. 

FUNERAL  SERVICES. 

Pages  231-242. 

Resolutions  of  Board  of  Foreign  Missions.  American  Bible  Society  and 
Sabbath  Committee. 

RESOLUTIONS   OF   SOCIETIES. 
Pages  243-246- 

OBITUARY   NOTICE. 

Pages  247-250. 


LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 


CHAPTER    I. 

IN  the  sturdy  character  of  a  Christian  Scotchman, 
brought  up  in  the  earnest  fashion  of  his  Cove- 
nanting ancestors,  there  is  something  that  carries  our 
thoughts  into  the  Book  of  Psalms  on  which  they  so 
loved  to  dwell,  and  we  think  of  the  "  tree  planted  by 
the  rivers  of  water,  that  bringeth  forth  his  fruit  in  his 
season ;  his  leaf  also  shall  not  wither ;  and  whatsoever 
he  doeth  shall  prosper";  for  "his  delight  is  in  the  law 
of  the  Lord,  and  in  his  law  doth  he  meditate  day  and 
night."  "  With  long  life  shall  he  be  satisfied,"  for  he 
has  the  promise  that  "  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow 
him  all  the  days  of  his  life,  and  he  shall  dwell  in  the 
house  of  the  Lord  forever." 

Never  were  these  words  more  truly  fulfilled  than  in 
the  history  of  Robert  Carter.  His  life  was  successful 
in  the  best  sense.  God  seemed  to  give  him  the  desire 
of  his  heart,  and  did  not  withhold  the  request  of  his 
lips.  Chastening  was  sent  to  him,  lest  there  should  be 
any  doubt  as  to  his  being  one  whom  the  Lord  loveth ; 
but  in  his  long  and  honored  life  sunshine  predominated 
over  shadow,  joy  over  sorrow.  He  went  to  his  grave 
like  a  shock  of  corn  fully  ripe,  with  no  cherished  plan 
defeated,  his  work  well  accomplished,  his  faith  firm  and 

1 


2  LLtE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

clear,  knowing  that  his  Eedeemer  liveth.  Let  those 
to  whom  he  was  dear  give,  as  he  would  have  done,  all 
the  glory  to  the  One  who  loved  him,  and  washed  him 
from  his  sins  in  His  blood. 

About  thirty  miles  from  Edinburgh,  and  as  many 
from  the  English  border,  stands  the  pleasant  village 
of  Earlston.  It  is  in  the  heart  of  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  parts  of  Scotland.  Four  miles  off  is  Melrose 
with  its  classic  abbey,  and  not  far  away  Abbotsford, 
where  the  Wizard  of  the  North  wove  many  an  enchant- 
ing spell,  and  Dryburgh,  where  he  lies  buried. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  Earlston  was 
so  secluded  from  intercourse  with  the  surrounding  world 
that  there  was  not  even  a  stage-coach  running  through 
it.  The  ancestors  of  some  of  the  villagers  could  be 
traced  back  for  five  or  six  centuries,  and  in  that  time  it 
had  made  little  progress.  Many  had  been  born,  grown  up 
to  manhood,  and  died  in  a  good  old  age,  who  had  never 
gone  beyond  the  hills  which  formed  its  sensible  horizon. 
But  they  were  an  intelligent  people,  eager  for  books  and 
learning,  sustaining  good  schools,  where  even  the  poor- 
est had  the  opportunity  of  studying  Latin  and  Greek ; 
and  they  were  also  a  God-fearing  folk,  bringing  up  their 
children  in  his  fear  and  in  the  study  of  his  Word.  The 
minister  went  from  house  to  house  duly  examining  the 
children  in  their  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  and  the 
Catechism,  and  it  has  been  said  that  if  at  nine  o'clock  at 
night  one  had  gone  through  the  village  he  would  have 
heard  the  sound  of  psalm-singing  and  prayer  and  read- 
ing of  the  Word  of  God  in  every  house,  so  general  was 
the  custom  of  family  worship. 

In  one  of  these  homes  Robert  Carter  was  bom,  on  No- 
vember 2,  1807,  He  was  the  second  child,  having  an 
elder  brother  who  grew  up  into  a  worthy  manhood,  but 


PARENTAGE.  3 

Eobert  always  took  the  lead  in  the  family,  his  strong 
vigorous  character  seeming  to  give  him  the  birthright. 

His  father,  Thomas  Carter,  was  a  native  of  Earl- 
ston,  a  man  of  sterling  qualities  and  much  intelligence. 
His  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Agnes  Ewing,  of 
Sprouston,  near  Kelso,  was  a  woman  of  great  original- 
ity, bright  and  quick-witted,  and  withal  an  earnest 
Christian. 

Her  own  lips  long  years  afterwards  told  the  follow- 
ing story  of  these  early  days.  She  had  all  her  life  been 
accustomed  to  attend  church  twice  a  day  on  Sunday. 
When  her  oldest  child  was  born  she  was  obliged  to  stay 
at  home  with  it  one  half  of  the  day,  and  this  was  a  sore 
trial.  Good  old  Mr,  Lauder,  the  minister,  called  one 
day,  and  she  told  him  how  greatly  she  felt  the  priva- 
tion. "  I  will  give  you  a  text,"  said  he,  "  to  think  of,  as 
you  sit  at  home  with  the  baby :  '  Take  this  child  and 
nurse  it  for  me,  and  I  will  give  thee  thy  wages.' "  The 
words  sank  into  her  heart,  and  were  a  constant  source 
of  strength  to  her  in  the  rearing  of  her  eleven  children. 
The  promise  was  indeed  kept  to  her, — the  wages  given; 
for  few  mothers  have  received  such  tender  and  watch- 
ful care  as  did  she  until  she  went  to  her  final  reward  at 
the  age  of  eighty-two  years. 

Mr.  Walter  Carter,  one  of  her  younger  sons,  gives 
the  following  sketch  of  his  parents. 

"  You  ask  me  for  a  brief  sketch  of  my  father,  and  I  am 
turning  over  the  leaves  of  memory  to  recall  the  days  of 
childhood  and  youth.  Thomas  Carter  was  a  short,  broad- 
shouldered,  broad-chested  man  ;  the  strongest  at  a  lift  I 
ever  knew.  His  arms  seemed  to  set  all  resistance  at  de- 
fiance, either  at  a  pull,  a  push,  or  a  blow.  His  hair  was 
black,  his  cheeks  red  and  rosy,  his  face  full  and  open  as 
the  day,  —  the  very  picture   of  health   and  strength.     He 


4  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

never  had  a  headache,  never  was  sick  for  a  day.  He  was 
overflowing  with  animal  spirits,  ready  for  the  joke,  the 
laugh,  and  the  Scottish  story,  —  a  great  reader,  a  free  and 
easy  speaker. 

"  He  was  a  true  Celt,  and  traced  his  pedigree  to  the  High- 
lands in  days  long  gone  by.  His  ancestors,  being  Protes- 
tants, fled  from  the  fire  of  persecution  and  their  native 
heath  to  the  Lowlands,  and  found  a  refuge,  where  we 
were  all  born,  in  the  pleasant  village  of  Earlston  on  the 
Leader.  Their  names  are  on  the  gravestones  in  the  parish 
churchyard. 

"  His  father  died  when  he  was  a  year  old,  and  his  godly 
mother  and  the  old  minister  brought  him  up.  He  often 
spoke  of  spending  an  hour  at  the  manse  on  Sabbath  even- 
ings, before  Sunday  schools  were  thought  of,  with  his  wise 
and  kind  minister.  Rev.  Mr.  Dalziell,  and  he  treasured  those 
lessons  till  his  dying  day.  His  mother  was  a  remarkable 
woman.  Mr.  Dalziell  used  to  say,  that,  if  the  Bible  had 
been  lost,  Mrs,  Carter  could  have  restored  it  from  memory. 
He  was  famous  as  an  athlete  in  all  the  Scottish  games  where 
strength  and  agility  were  required,  and  with  his  high  spirit, 
and  quick  though  kindly  temper,  he  often  got  into  boyish 
scrapes.  His  mother  could  not  get  hold  of  him  during  the 
day,  but  exercised  her  parental  control  and  correction  at 
night.  One  night  while  she  was  plying  the  'tawse,'  a  long 
piece  of  leather  cut  into  strips  at  one  end,  he  made  a  good 
deal  of  noise,  and  she  said,  '  Solomon  says  we  must  not 
spare  a  child  for  his  crying.'  Father  lost  his  patience,  — 
although  usually  most  loving  and  respectful  to  his  mother, 
whom  he  almost  worshipped, — and  cried,  'Solomon  has 
naething  to  do  wi'  it.' 

"  His  mother's  fervent  prayers,  in  family  worship  and  at 
his  bedside,  as  she  pleaded  for  her  children  to  the  widow's 
God,  bore  fruit  in  his  giving  his  heart  early  to  the  Lord 
Jesus.  Indeed,  he  never  knew  when  the  change  came.  He 
always  took  delight  in  prayer,  and  in  the  ministry  of  the 


PARENTAGE.  5 

Word,  and  every  spare  momeut  was  spent  in  prayerful 
reading  of  the  Bible. 

"  He  had  a  good  English  education  ;  his  wide  reading  and 
reflection,  his  frank  and  friendly  spirit  to  all,  his  lively  inter- 
est in  the  current  questions  of  the  day,  made  him  ready  and 
helpful  in  any  society  in  which  he  might  be  placed.  He  was 
wisely  directed  in  the  choice  of  a  wife  when  he  married 
Agnes  Ewing,  the  daughter  of  a  respected  elder  in  the 
Antiburgher  Church.  Her  gentle,  kindly  nature,  her  wis- 
dom and  conservatism,  held  in  check  his  more  impulsive 
spirit,  and  for  forty  years  she  was  a  most  faithful  and  loving 
wife,  and  a  model  mother  of  eleven  children,  who  all  grew 
to  be  men  and  women ;  for  forty  years  there  was  no  death 
in  the  family,  and  father  was  the  first  to  be  taken.  Like 
Abraham,  he  erected  an  altar  at  once  in  the  little  stone 
cottage  where  we  were  all  born,  the  scene  of  so  much  true 
happiness.  The  fire  never  went  out  on  that  altar  until  the 
family  left  for  America,  and  was  rekindled  in  the  home  in  the 
New  World.  For  some  years  my  father's  business  took  him 
from  home  at  too  early  an  hour  to  gather  his  children  around 
him,  and  mother  took  the  duty,  and  0  how  lovingly  was  the 
sacred  duty  done  !  In  well  chosen,  fervent,  tender  words 
she  commended  the  children  and  the  absent  husband  to 
the  Heavenly  Father's  care. 

*'  The  earliest  recollections  I  have  are  of  those  morning 
prayers.  My  father  was  gifted  in  prayer,  and  I  used  to 
wonder  if  I  should  ever  be  able  to  pour  out  my  heart  as 
he  did  to  the  Father  in  heaven ;  but  my  mother's  prayers, 
so  loving,  so  filial,  so  reverent,  touched  my  heart,  and  led 
to  a  desire  that  I  too  might  so  pray,  and  get  an  answer 
of  peace. 

"  The  Sabbath  was  in  our  household  the  '  day  of  days.' 
The  family  morning  worship,  the  breakfast  table  surrounded 
by  a  crowd  of  hungry,  happy  children  and  parents  all  to- 
gether, glad  at  the  reunion  and  the  prospect  of  rest  and 
worship ;  the  morning  church,  all  attending ;  after  dinner, 


6  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

family  worship  again  (twice  on  week  days,  three  times  on 
Sabbath)  ;  a  few  words  about  the  sermon,  and  prayer  for  a 
blessing  on  the  preached  Word  ;  then  Sabbath  school.  It 
was  the  first  Sabbath  school  in  the  south  of  Scotland,  and 
well  attended ;  all  the  churches  in  the  village  sent  their 
quota ;  its  superintendent  was  Rev.  Mr.  Crawford  of  the 
Relief  Church ;  Brother  Robert  was  his  assistant,  and  took 
his  place  when  he  was  absent ;  both  were  good.  "We  met  in 
a  stone  cottage  built  from  the  ruins  of  the  Rhymer's  Tower. 
We  had  none  of  the  modern  improvements,  —  no  library,  no 
Sunday  school  hymns  or  picture  papers ;  but  we  had  the 
Bible,  the  Shorter  Catechism,  and  Rouse's  version  of  the 
Psalms ;  also  earnest  teaching  of  the  Word,  heart  to  heart 
work,  hearty  singing  of  the  grand  old  Psalms,  and  fervent 
prayer  for  the  Divine  blessing ;  afternoon  church,  when  old 
and  young  went  again,  then  home  to  supper,  when  the 
younger  children  gave  the  texts  and  the  older  ones  portions 
of  the  sermons,  while  father  and  mother  made  the  practical 
application. 

"  In  the  early  evening  of  the  Sabbath,  while  father  was 
reading  some  of  his  Puritan  or  early  Scottish  divines,  mother 
took  her  seat  with  the  children  around  her,  and  gave  us  the 
lesson  on  the  Shorter  Catechism.  As  soon  as  we  could  talk, 
the  first  answer  was  recited  by  the  youngest  child,  and  all 
came  in  as  far  as  they  could  go  ;  those  over  six  were  expected 
to  go  clear  through ;  mother  would  ask  the  questions  and 
give  the  answers  without  book,  while  she  explained  the  mox'e 
difficult  ones  and  applied  them  to  the  duties  of  daily  life.  I 
can  still  remember  Justification,  Adoption,  Sanctification,  as 
explained  by  her,  the  difference  between  an  act  and  a  work, 
the  several  points  in  Effectual  Calling,  God's  side  and  our 
side  in  the  matter  (so  often  a  stumbling-block  to  the  carnal 
mind,  and  such  a  comfort  to  the  mature  Christian)  of  Elec- 
tion. Family  worship  closed  the  blessed  day.  When  I  hear 
of  the  weariness  in  some  families  now,  I  wonder,  —  and  bless 
God  for  such  parents." 


EARLY  DAYS  IN  SCOTLAND.  7 

Among  Eobert  Carter's  earliest  recollections  was  the 
rejoicing  caused  by  the  battle  of  Waterloo.  He  was 
then  only  seven  years  old,  but  he  always  remembered 
the  illuminations  and  shoutings  and  talk  about  Bona- 
parte and  Wellington.  It  seemed  at  the  time  as  if  all 
things  must  thereafter  go  on  smoothly,  since  the  mighty 
foe  had  been  conquered  and  was  banished  to  St.  Helena. 
But  the  long  war  and  the  great  triumph  had  to  be  paid 
for,  and  for  many  years  the  heavy  taxes  bore  down  hard 
upon  the  working  classes.  Thus  the  early  years  of  this 
century  became  very  trying  times  financially  in  Britain. 
The  day  wages  of  an  ordinary  laborer  were  but  a  shilling, 
while  those  of  the  artisan  class  were  only  a  little  more. 

Earlston  was  famous  for  its  ginghams ;  these  were 
the  best  in  Scotland,  fine,  soft,  and  silky,  and  a  larger 
part  of  the  families  in  the  village  were  weavers.  The 
work  was  not  done  in  mills,  but  each  weaver  had  his 
loom  set  up  in  his  own  cottage,  and  sold  his  web  when 
finished  directly  to  the  merchants. 

In  Thomas  Carter's  cottage  there  were  six  looms, 
worked  by  himself,  his  two  eldest  sons,  and  hired 
helpers,  for  a  stern  necessity  compelled  every  member 
of  the  large  family  to  go  to  work  as  soon  as  they  were 
able  to  manage  a  loom. 

At  the  age  of  nine  years  and  six  months  Eobert  was 
taken  from  school  and  put  at  the  loom,  and  from  that 
time  his  education  was  acquired  entirely  by  his  own  ex- 
ertions.    Of  this  period  he  wrote  long  afterwards  :  — 

"  My  work  was  light,  but  tedious.  From  dawn  till 
ten  and  sometimes  till  eleven  at  night  I  had  to  toil 
until  my  task  was  done.  I  cared  little  for  the  confine- 
ment, but  felt  grievously  the  loss  of  books  and  mental 
improvement.  From  early  childhood  I  had  an  insa- 
tiable thirst  for  readincj.     The  stories  of  Wallace  and 


8  LIFE  OF   ROBERT  CARTER. 

Bruce,  the  Pilgrim's  Progress,  Hervey's  Meditations, 
and  many  other  books  of  a  somewhat  motley  character, 
cheered  my  solitary  hours. 

"  After  becoming  acquainted  with  my  trade,  I  had 
a  board  erected  at  my  left  hand,  on  which  I  fastened 
my  book,  and  worked  and  read  all  day.  The  books  in 
my  father's  library  having  run  out,  I  was  obliged  to 
borrow  from  some  of  my  neighbors.  One  weaver  in 
particular,  who  owned  what  I  considered  a  splendid 
library,  very  generously  offered  to  lend  me  such  as  I 
might  select.  Rollin's  Ancient  History,  in  six  volumes, 
was  the  first  I  read,  and  great  was  my  delight  in  travel- 
ling the  field  through  which  the  French  historian  led 
me.  One  incident  occurred,  however,  when  I  had  fin- 
ished the  fourth  volume,  which  I  feared  would  put  an 
end  to  my  delightful  feast.  While  I  was  on  my  way 
with  that  volume  under  my  arm  to  exchange  it  for  the 
fifth,  a  dog  sprang  at  me  and  made  his  teeth  almost 
meet  in  the  book.  "Wlien  I  saw  what  he  had  done,  I 
burst  into  tears  and  continued  crying  until  I  reached 
the  dwelling  of  my  kind  friend. 

"  When  I  showed  him  how  much  the  book  was  in- 
jured, 'Oh !'  said  he,  'I  am  so  glad  that  it  was  the  book, 
and  not  your  arm.  It  might  have  cost  you  your  life. 
Here  is  the  next  volume.'  When  he  opened  his  book- 
case and  handed  me  the  next  volume,  I  thought  that  he 
was  the  most  generous  man  I  had  ever  known. 

"  A  little  before  this,  when  I  was  about  seven  years 
old,  there  was  an  auction  sale  of  old  furniture,  which, 
as  it  was  a  rare  occurrence  in  the  village,  I  attended 
with  great  interest.  Towards  the  close  of  the  sale,  a 
copy  of  Josephus's  Works  in  folio,  much  dilapidated, 
and  minus  one  of  the  boards  of  the  cover,  was  held  up 
by  the  auctioneer,  and,  as  no  one  seemed  to  bid,  I  called 


LOVE  FOR  BOOKS.  9 

out,  '  Fourpence.'  '  It  is  yours,'  cried  he,  '  my  little  fel- 
low ;  you  're  the  youngest  bidder  we  've  had  to-day.' 
This  fourpence  had  been  collecting  for  some  time  pre- 
viously, and  was  probably  the  largest  sum  I  had  ever 
possessed.  When  I  got  the  book  in  my  arms,  it  was 
with  no  small  difficulty  I  carried  it  home.  With  an 
apple  I  hired  a  little  playmate  to  help  me,  and  we  car- 
ried it  between  us,  and  when  we  got  tired,  we  laid  the 
book  down  on  the  roadside  and  rested,  each  sitting  on 
an  end.  But  O  what  a  treasure  it  proved  while  I 
eagerly  devoured  its  contents  !  I  used  to  lay  it  down 
upon  the  cottage  floor,  and  myself  beside  or  upon  it, 
and  travel  slowly  down  the  long  page  until  I  reached 
the  bottom,  and  then  tackle  the  next  page.  I  had  read 
the  Bible  through  twice  in  order,  and  I  was  eager  to  get 
all  the  additional  information  I  could  about  the  Jews. 
I  was  greatly  puzzled  by  the  word  '  Greeting,'  which 
occurred  so  often  as  a  salutation  at  the  beginning  of 
letters.  That  was  our  Scottish  word  for  crying,  and  I 
could  not  understand  its  relation  to  letters  bearing  good 
tidings. 

"  Shortly  after  I  finished  Josephus,  one  fine  summer 
evening,  my  father  took  me  with  him  to  pay  a  visit  to  a 
friend  who  owned  a  pretty  little  farm  about  three  miles 
distant.  He  was  reading  Fox's  Book  of  Martyrs  when 
we  arrived,  and  he  told  us  that  he  was  greatly  fascinated 
by  it.  My  father  said  that  he  would  like  to  have  such 
a  book  for  his  little  boy,  but  that  it  was  far  too  costly 
for  him  to  purchase.  The  gentleman  asked  me  to  read 
a  little  for  him.  When  I  paused,  he  exclaimed,  '  He  is 
the  finest  reader  I  ever  heard,'  and  inquired  what  school 
I  attended.  My  father  told  him  that  I  had  not  been 
at  school  since  I  was  nine  years  old,  but  that  I  was 
extravagantly  fond  of  reading.     '  Well,'  said  he,  '  I  have 


10  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

finished  the  first  volume,  and  you  are  welcome  to  it.' 
This  work  introduced  me  to  a  field  entirely  new  and 
extremely  rich  in  its  details,  and  when  I  finished  it  I 
was  sorry  that  there  was  no  n\pre  of  it  to  read. 

"  About  this  period,  my  cousin  Thomas  Carter,  who 
was  a  student  in  Edinburgh  University  preparatory  to 
his  theological  course,  had  returned  home  to  spend  his 
summer  vacation.  He  loved  to  visit  us,  and,  though 
he  was  five  years  older  than  I,  he  became  very  much 
attached  to  me.  He  gave  me  his  old  Latin  books,  and 
came  several  times  in  the  week  to  give  me  instructions 
in  the  elements  of  that  language.  I  entered  upon  this 
study  with  all  the  zeal  of  which  I  was  capable.  Diffi- 
culty after  difficulty  gave  way  before  me,  and  I  soon 
became  able  to  read  Cordery's  Colloquies,  Cornelius  Ne- 
pos,  Csesar,  Ovid,  and  Virgil.  At  a  subsequent  period, 
this  cousin  also  taught  me  Greek. 

"  There  were  two  fairs  in  our  village,  one  in  summer 
and  one  in  autumn  each  year.  At  these  fairs,  which 
were  looked  forward  to  with  great  delight  by  all  the 
village  boys,  there  assembled  dealers  in  cattle,  hard- 
ware, toys,  and  books.  The  stalls  for  the  sale  of  books 
early  possessed  a  charm  for  me,  and  I  expended  with 
much  care  the  few  pence  I  could  muster  on  the  occasion. 
At  the  summer  fair,  when  I  was  twelve  years  old,  I  was 
standing  by  a  stall  where  were  exhibited  some  of  the 
Latin  classics.  I  picked  up  a  copy  of  Ovid,  and  was 
looking  very  intently  at  the  narrative  of  Pyramus  and 
Thisbe,  when  a  group  of  the  grammar  school  boys  paused 
beside  me.  One  of  them  jeeringly  said,  '  "What  do  you 
mean  by  pretending  to  read  Latin  ? '  '  This  seems  to  be 
a  pretty  story,'  said  I ;  '  won't  you  read  it  to  me  ? '  He 
began  with  the  air  of  one  who  knew  all  about  it,  and 
with  some  difficulty  made  his  way  through  a  few  lines. 


LOVE  FOR  BOOKS.  11 

'  I  don't  think  you  are  getting  the  meaning  of  it  very 
well.  Let  me  try,'  said  I,  And  taking  the  volume,  I 
commenced  where  he  paused,  and  read  freely  on,  to  the 
no  small  astonishment  of  the  boys,  who  agreed  that  I 
knew  more  about  Latin  than  they  did.  This  raised 
me  not  a  little  in  the  estimation  of  those  who  used  to 
think  me  a  dull,  lifeless  creature,  who  moped  over 
books  while  they  were  at  play,  and  gave  a  fresh  im- 
pulse to  my  classical  studies. 

"  A  volume  which  fell  into  my  hands  at  this  time 
had  a  powerful  influence  over  my  mind.  This  was 
Foster's  Essays.  The  Essay  on  Decision  of  Character 
I  remember  reading  on  a  grassy  knoll  one  fine  sunshiny 
afternoon  after  my  task  on  the  loom  had  been  finished 
for  the  day.  The  perusal  almost  overwhelmed  me.  I 
arose  and  looked  down  upon  the  village,  the  meadow, 
and  the  silver  stream  that  meandered  through  the  val- 
ley beneath,  and  I  felt  that  nothing  was  too  difficult 
for  me,  provided  I  applied  my  faculties  to  it,  and  per- 
severingly  toiled  on.  The  impulse  received  from  this 
noble  effort  of  genius  was  not  soon  lost,  and  even  to 
this  day  I  never  take  up  the  volume  without  feeling 
conscious  that  it  has  proved  to  me  a  real  blessing. 

"  The  lessons  assigned  by  my  cousin  Thomas  grew 
more  and  more  interesting  after  I  became  familiar  with 
the  first  elements.  The  window  at  which  I  sat  weav- 
ing commanded  a  view  of  the  narrow  footpath  along 
which  he  always  came ;  and  when  I  caught  a  glimpse 
of  his  manly  figure  as  he  approached,  my  heart  leaped 
within  me  for  joy.  His  patience  was  remarkable. 
He  rarely  censured  me  for  doing  too  little,  but  often 
told  me  that  I  undertook  too  much. 

"  During  the  three  winter  months,  my  father  sent 
me  to  evening  school  to  study  arithmetic.     My  teacher 


12  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

was  in  my  estimation  one  of  the  most  amiable  and 
affectionate  of  men.  The  pupils  were  few  in  number, 
not  more  than  seven  or  eight,  so  that  he  devoted  a 
great  deal  of  attention  to  us.  There  was  one  great 
drawback,  however,  to  our  progress,  —  we  lost  during 
the  nine  months  much  of  what  we  had  acquired  in 
three,  so  that  the  second  winter  it  required  some  time 
to  review  before  we  entered  on  new  ground.  The  third 
winter  that  I  had  the  pleasure  of  attending  this  much 
loved  teacher  there  was  a  general  stagnation  in  business, 
so  that  the  weavers  could  get  no  employment.  I  could 
find  nothing  else  to  do,  so  I  attended  school  all  day  as 
well  as  in  the  evening  for  eleven  weeks ;  and  this  was 
the  only  period  I  was  permitted  to  attend  a  day  school 
since  I  was  little  more  than  nine  years  old. 

"  I  was  just  beginning  a  course  in  geometry,  when  I 
was  hired  by  a  farmer  in  the  neighborhood  to  watch  a 
field  of  newly  sown  wheat  to  protect  it  from  the  crows, 
and  afterwards  I  was  employed  in  herding  cattle.  This 
broke  in  sadly  upon  my  darling  pursuits.  The  fences 
were  so  bad  that  I  could  rarely  venture  to  open  a  book. 
On  one  occasion  I  sat  down  upon  the  top  of  a  stone  wall 
covered  with  turf,  and  read  a  portion  of  the  Book  of 
Job.  My  attention  was  soon  riveted  on  the  subject, 
and  I  entirely  forgot  my  duty.  When  I  looked  up  from 
the  Bible,  there  was  not  a  cow  in  sight.  I  ran  to  an  ad- 
joining height,  and  lo,  the  whole  herd  had  jumped  the 
fence,  and  were  quietly  feeding  in  an  adjoining  field. 
From  that  time  I  had  to  deny  myself  the  gratification 
of  reading,  and  a  severe  trial  I  found  it  to  be.  The 
times  however  improved,  and  as  I  succeeded  in  getting 
a  web  to  weave,  by  which  I  could  earn  more  money 
than  by  herding,  I  was  released  from  this  unhappy  po- 
sition, and  restored  to  my  old  favorites. 


RELIGIOUS   DEVELOPMENT.  13 

"  While  I  was  thus  struggling  to  improve  my  mind, 
I  had  no  higher  end  in  view  than  to  raise  myself  above 
the  humble  condition  in  which  I  was  placed.  I  could 
not  bear  to  be  looked  down  upon  by  those  in  more 
favored  circumstances  than  myself.  I  attended  church 
regularly  twice  every  Sabbath,  but  it  was  not  from  love 
to  the  truth  or  a  desire  to  profit  by  the  Word,  but  simply 
from  habit  and  obedience  to  my  parents.  My  memory 
being  retentive,  I  could  in  the  Sabbath  evening  repeat 
large  portions  of  the  sermons ;  but  this  only  tended  to 
foster  my  pride,  as  I  got  credit  for  attention  to  the  dis- 
course, and  was  praised  for  being  a  good  boy.  Often, 
indeed,  my  heart  was  pricked  by  the  faithful  and  earnest 
preaching  under  which  I  sat,  —  often  was  I  inclined  to 
cry  out,  '  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ? '  Alas  !  how 
often  did  I  quench  the  Spirit,  yet  He  did  not  leave  me 
to  my  own  devices.  When  I  saw  the  members  of  the 
church  approach  the  communion  table  while  I  was  left 
behind,  I  had  sore  misgivings,  I  felt  that  it  was  my 
bounden  duty  to  acknowledge  my  Lord  and  Saviour  be- 
fore men  and  angels,  and  I  often  resolved  that  I  would 
do  so  before  the  next  communion.  For  six  weeks  pre- 
vious to  the  celebration  of  the  Supper,  notice  was  given 
from  the  pulpit  of  the  day  in  each  week  when  the 
minister  would  be  glad  to  converse  with  those  who  de- 
sired to  unite  with  the  church  in  sealing  ordinances. 
This  was  to  me  a  time  of  searching  of  heart.  I  read 
Willison's  Sacramental  Meditations,  and  Henry's  Com- 
municant's Companion,  and  other  devotional  works 
fitted  to  instruct  and  impress  my  mind,  and  at  last  I 
resolved  to  call  upon  the  minister  and  state  my  con- 
victions. I  was  then  fourteen  years  of  age,  a  poor 
weaver  lad,  almost  entirely  excluded  from  society, —  so 
much  so  that  I  had  never  until  now  entered  the  house 


14  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

of  our  pastor.  Each  year,  indeed,  he  visited  his  entire 
flock  from  house  to  house,  and  on  these  occasions  he 
catechised  the  children,  conversed  with  the  parents  re- 
garding their  spiritual  interests,  and  prayed  with  the 
household ;  but  these  were  the  only  opportunities  I  had 
enjoyed  of  access  to  him  in  private.  As  the  ambassa- 
dor of  God,  he  appeared  so  venerable  that  I  dreaded  to 
approach  him  alone.  And  yet  I  preferred,  I  can  hardly 
tell  why,  to  converse  with  him  rather  than  with  my 
own  father.  On  one  of  the  appointed  days  I  called  at 
the  manse  and  asked  for  the  minister.  I  was  introduced 
to  his  study,  and  told  to  be  seated.  My  tongue  clave 
to  the  roof  of  my  mouth.  After  some  short  conversa- 
tion on  other  subjects,  he  interrogated  me  regarding  the 
nature  and  end  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  my  motives  for 
desiring  to  participate  in  it,  and  the  duties  devolving  on 
those  who  thus  renounced  the  world.  The  interview 
was  brief.  He  kindly  encouraged  me,  and  expressed 
himself  satisfied  with  my  answers.  On  parting  he  re- 
quested me  to  tell  my  father  to  call  on  him,  as  he 
wished  to  converse  with  him  on  the  subject,  and  if 
entirely  satisfied  I  should  meet  with  the  session  on  the 
Thursday  previous  to  the  communion.  No  obstacles 
were  presented  to  my  reception,  and  I  became  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Secession  Church  of  Earlston. 

"  This  step  I  never  regretted.  It  greatly  strengthened 
me  in  my  resolutions  after  amendment,  and  though  I 
entered  upon  my  Christian  life  in  much  fear  and  trem- 
bling, I  was  not  left  utterly  to  faint.  When  tempted  to 
join  with  careless  companions,  I  was  withheld  by  the 
consideration,  '  I  have  vowed  unto  the  Lord,  and  cannot 
go  back.' 

"  About  this  time  a  young  weaver,  three  years  older 
than  myself,  often  conversed  with  me  upon  spiritual 


CHRISTIAN  NURTURE.  15 

subjects.  We  retired  frequently  together  in  the  sum- 
mer evenings  to  a  field  near  our  house,  and  there  kneeled 
down  and  engaged  in  prayer.  I  have  often  looked 
back  with  delight  upon  these  spiritual  interviews,  espe- 
cially as  my  dear  friend  was,  in  the  vigor  of  youth, 
seized  with  a  brain  fever,  and  after  a  severe  struggle 
of  five  days  yielded  up  his  spirit  into  the  hands  of  his 
Maker." 

Mr.  Carter's  religious  experience  is  a  forcible  illus- 
tration of  the  type  of  piety  which  is  often  seen  where 
the  training  of  children  is  faithful,  and  according  to  the 
Scriptural  plan,  where  the  parent  is  told  to  speak  to  his 
little  ones  "  when  thou  sittest  in  the  house,  and  when 
thou  walkest  by  the  way,  when  thou  liest  down,  and 
when  thou  risest  up."  Christian  nurture  produces  the 
highest  kind  of  Christian  character,  symmetrical,  earnest, 
and  duty-loving.  Of  him  the  elder  brothers  and  sisters 
who  knew  him  as  a  child  bore  witness,  "  Eobert  was  al- 
ways a  good  boy."  His  sense  of  duty  was  ever  strong, 
and  even  as  a  boy  he  lived  not  to  himself.  He  assisted 
his  parents  in  their  responsibilities  for  the  family,  feel- 
ing as  keen  an  interest  as  they  did  in  the  welfare  of  his 
brothers  and  sisters.  Even  to  old  age  he  never  could 
understand  how  young  men  could  work  for  themselves 
alone,  without  feeling  the  duty  of  helping  their  parents 
and  extending  to  brothers  and  sisters  a  helping  hand. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  way  in  which  the  daily  life 
of  his  parents  constantly  preached  to  him,  he  used  often 
in  after  life  to  tell  a  story  of  his  walking  one  day  with 
his  father  to  a  place  at  some  distance.  The  way  was  hot 
and  dusty,  and  they  were  feeling  very  thirsty,  when  in  a 
little  nook  by  the  roadside  they  espied  a  crystal  spring. 
The  boy  sprang  eagerly  forward  to  drink,  but  the  man 
paused  by  the  spring-side  and  raised  the  broad  Scottish 


16  LH'E   of   ROBERT   CARTER. 

bonnet  from  his  head,  and  the  child  saw  his  father's 
lips  move  in  prayer  as  he  silently  gave  thanks  to  God 
before  stooping  to  drink.  It  was  an  object  lesson  which 
he  never  forgot.  Through  life  his  grateful  thought  al- 
ways went  up  to  the  Giver  before  enjoying  the  gift.  It 
is  pleasant  to  think  that,  as  the  son  afterwards  told 
the  story  in  many  a  Sunday  school,  the  simple  act  of 
that  Scottish  peasant,  who  would  not  take  so  much  as 
a  drink  of  water  without  thanking  God  for  it,  lived  on 
for  more  than  seventy  years,  and  is  still  told  "  for  a 
memorial  of  him."  He  often  used  another  memory  of 
his  father  as  an  illustration  of  the  Heavenly  Father's 
care.  His  vivid  imagination,  excited  by  the  stories 
often  told  among  the  peasantry  of  "  ghaists  and  bogies," 
made  him  as  a  child  timid  when  alone  in  the  dark. 
One  night  he  had  been  making  a  visit  with  his  father 
to  the  house  of  a  neighbor,  and  as  they  returned  home 
a  severe  thunder-storm  came  up.  His  father  noticed 
how  the  little  fellow  shrank  and  shuddered  at  the  swift 
and  vivid  flashes  of  lightning,  and,  drawing  him  closer 
to  his  side,  threw  over  his  head  the  skirts  of  the  long 
loose  mantle  he  was  wearing,  and  so  the  boy  walked 
through  the  darkness,  clinging  to  his  father's  hand,  and 
lapped  in  the  folds  of  his  cloak,  until  they  reached  the 
safe  and  happy  fireside  of  their  own  home. 

His  strong  imagination  had  ample  food  to  feed  upon 
in  the  tales  of  the  Scottish  border  which  were  rife  about 
them.  He  often  described  to  his  children  how  the 
neighbors  would  gather  about  their  blazing  fire  of  a 
winter's  evening,  and  one  and  another  would  relate 
stories  of  life  and  adventure  in  the  days  of  chivalry. 
Some  of  them  he  loved  to  repeat  to  the  close  of  his 
life.  Two  of  these  stories  he  so  often  recounted  to  an 
interested  circle  of  listeners,  that  they  seemed  to  those 


SCOTTISH  STORIES.  17 

who  knew  him  best  almost  a  part  of  himself,  and  as 
such  are  related  here,  as  nearly  as  possible  in  his 
own  words ;  but  the  Scottish  accent  that  lent  them 
such  a  charm  must  needs  be  missing. 

James  the  First  of  Scotland  was  sent  as  a  child  to 
France  to  be  educated ;  but  on  the  way  his  vessel  was 
captured  by  an  English  cruiser,  and  he  was  carried 
a  prisoner  to  England  and  brought  up  there  to  a  de- 
gree of  culture  which  he  never  could  have  found  at  the 
Scottish  court.  When  he  returned  as  a  young  man  to 
Scotland,  he  found  many  abuses  had  arisen  under  the 
rule  of  his  turbulent  nobles,  and  these  he  set  himself 
to  correct.  He  was  accustomed  to  go  about  incogiiito 
among  his  people,  that  he  might  discover  their  needs. 
One  day  in  the  garb  of  a  peasant  he  approached  a 
stream  which  he  wished  to  cross,  and  seeing  a  soldier 
tishing  near  by  he  called  to  him  to  know  if  he  could 
get  across. 

"  Ou,  ay,"  he  replied,  "  there  is  a  ford  just  here  ;  but 
I  '11  carry  you  across  if  you  '11  gie  me  a  gill  o'  whiskey 
at  Meggie's,"  pointing  to  a  tavern  across  the  brook. 

"  But  what  '11  ye  do  if  ye  drap  me  in  ? " 

"  Ou,  then,  I  '11  gie  ye  twa  gills." 

The  king  mounted  the  soldier's  back,  and  the  two  got 
almost  across  the  stream,  when,  as  the  soldier  stoutly 
maintained  afterwards,  the  king  "  clinked "  him,  and 
they  both  went  down.  "  Aweel,"  said  the  soldier,  "  I  '11 
have  to  pay  you  my  twa  gills."  So  the  two  went  into 
Meggie's,  and  drank  their  two  gills,  but  when  it  came 
to  the  reckoning  the  soldier  found  he  had  no  money. 

"  Hech,  sirs,"  says  the  king,  "  what  are  ye  gaun  to 
dae  noo?" 

"  0,"  says  the  soldier,  "  I  '11  pawn  my  sword." 

"  But,"  says  the  king,  "  the  twenty-first  of  the  month 
2 


18  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

is  coming  roun',  and  there 's  to  be  a  graund  review  o' 
the  troops,  and  what  '11  ye  do,  wantin'  your  sword  ? " 

"  I  hae  a  timber  sword  just  as  like  the  ither  as  twa 
peas,  — ye  couldna  tell  the  ane  frae  the  ither.  1 11  just 
carry  that." 

The  twenty-first  of  the  month  came  round,  and  the 
king  was  to  review  the  troops  in  person.  A  deserter 
was  brought  in,  and  taken  before  the  king  for  him  to  de- 
cide upon  his  punishment.  The  king  said  that  desertion 
was  so  common  that  it  was  necessary  to  devise  some 
punishment  that  would  strike  terror  into  the  hearts  of 
offenders,  and  therefore  he  would  condemn  the  culprit 
to  decapitation,  and  would  himself  choose  the  comrade 
who  must  perform  the  execution.  So  the  king  walked 
along  the  line  of  troops  until  he  came  to  his  quondam 
friend  of  the  brook,  and,  singling  him  out,  he  said,  "  You 
must  be  the  executioner  ! " 

The  poor  fellow  sank  down  upon  his  bare  knees,  for 
he  was  a  Highlander,  and  begged  to  be  let  off.  "  Send 
me  agen  the  Southron,  and  I  will  fight  to  the  death ; 
but  I  canna  imbrue  my  sword  in  the  blood  of  a  coun- 
tryman, I  canna  do  it."  But  the  king  was  inexorable, 
and  the  soldier  was  dragged  forward,  more  dead  than 
ahve,  to  the  place  where  a  temporary  scaffold  had  been 
erected.  "  May  I  not  make  a  prayer  with  the  unhappy 
wretch  before  he  suffers  ? " 

"  Certainly,  I  canna  refuse  that,"  said  the  king. 

The  soldier  fell  upon  his  knees  and  made  a  most  fer- 
vent prayer  that  the  eyes  of  those  in  authority  might 
be  opened,  and  that  they  might  see  the  iniquity  of  tak- 
ing away  that  which  they  never  could  restore,  and  that, 
in  testimony  of  his  displeasure,  the  Almighty  would  be 
pleased  to  turn  his  steel  sword  into  a  timber  one.  "  Be- 
hold a  miracle ! "  he  then  exclaimed,  springing  to  his 


GEORDIE   AND  THE   AMBASSADOR.  19 

feet,  and  waving  his  sword  above  his  head.  "  Behold 
a  miracle ! " 

The  generals  standing  by  stepped  forward,  and  ex- 
amined the  sword.  "  Please  your  Majesty,  it  is  a  fact. 
The  sword  is  indeed  a  wooden  one." 

The  king  was  laughing  in  his  sleeve,  and  with  diffi- 
culty controlled  himself  sufficiently  to  order  the  release 
of  the  prisoner.  Then  he  said  to  the  soldier,  "  You 
are  colonel  of  such  a  regiment,"  adding  in  a  whisper, 
"hut  ye  maunna  pawn  you?'  siuord  at  Meggies  again." 

The  other  story  was  called  "  Geordie  and  the  Am- 
bassador." 

When  James  the  Sixth  of  Scotland  came  to  the  throne 
of  England  as  James  the  First  of  that  country,  ambas- 
sadors came  from  all  kingdoms  of  the  Continent  to  con- 
gratulate him  on  his  accession.  Among  the  rest  was  the 
Spanish  ambassador.  One  day  he  was  talking  with  the 
king,  who  was  a  bit  of  a  pedant,  about  the  institutions 
of  learning.  He  said,  "  There  is  one  desideratum  in  our 
colleges  which  has  never  been  attained.  It  is  a  profes- 
sorship to  teach  dumb  signs,  so  that  when  a  Frenchman 
and  a  Spaniard  and  an  Englishman  come  together  they 
may  make  themselves  understood  by  each  other  without 
difficulty." 

Said  the  boastful  king,  "  I  have  such  a  professorship. 
It  is  in  the  most  northerly  college  in  my  dominions,  at 
Aberdeen." 

"  I  would  gladly  travel  far  to  see  such  a  wonder," 
said  the  ambassador.     "  I  shall  go  to  Aberdeen." 

The  embarrassed  king  wrote  to  the  professors  at 
Aberdeen  that  he  was  in  a  scrape,  and  they  must  get 
him  out  as  best  they  could.  When  the  ambassador 
arrived  at  Aberdeen,  he  was  informed  that  the  professor 
of  dumb  signs  was  from  home  for  six  weeks.     "  I  am 


20  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

going  to  make  the  tour  of  the  Highlands,"  said  he,  "  and 
will  be  back  in  six  weeks."  When  he  returned,  the 
professors  concluded  that  he  must  be  got  rid  of  in  some 
way,  for  it  would  ruin  them  to  fete  him  during  a  long 
stay. 

There  was  one  Geordie,  a  butcher,  blind  of  one  eye. 
Him  they  dressed  up  in  professor's  gown  and  a  long 
wig  coming  down  to  his  waist.  Geordie  was  sworn  not 
to  speak,  but  only  to  answer  the  ambassador  by  signs. 
The  ambassador  was  introduced,  and  the  professors 
waited  about  the  door.  When  he  came  out  they  asked, 
"  How  do  you  like  our  professor  of  dumb  signs  ? " 

"He  is  wonderful.  I  did  not  suppose  such  a  man 
existed." 

"  But,  to  descend  to  particulars,  what  did  he  do  ? " 

"  I  held  up  one  finger  to  intimate  that  there  was  one 
God.  He  held  up  two  to  show  there  was  the  Father 
and  the  Son.  I  held  up  three  to  denote  the  Trinity. 
He  doubled  his  fist  to  show  that  there  was  Trinity  in 
Unity.  I  held  up  an  orange  to  show  the  bounty  with 
which  a  kind  Providence  had  blessed  the  earth.  He 
held  up  a  piece  of  oat  cake  to  show  that  the  staff  of  life 
was  better  than  the  delicacies  of  it." 

When  Geordie  came  out,  he  was  asked,  "Aweel, 
Geordie,  how  did  ye  come  on  wi'  the  ambassador  ? " 

"  The  ambassador  !  If  I  had  him  at  the  dam,  I  would 
gie  him  a  guid  deuking." 

"  Ye  wadna  deuk  the  ambassador,  wad  ye  ? " 

"  Atweel  wad  I." 

"  But  what  did  he  dae  ? " 

"  He  held  up  ae  finger,  making  a  fule  o'  me  wi'  my 
ae  ee."  Geordie  was  blind  of  an  eye.  "  I  held  up  two  to 
say  that  my  ane  was  as  guid  as  baith  his.  He  held 
up  three  to  signify  there  was  only  three  atweeu  us.     I 


I.OVE  FOR  POETRY.  21 

doubled  my  nieve  [fist]  to  let  him  ken  I  was  ready  for 
him.  Mair  than  a'  that,  the  puppy,  he  took  out  an 
orange  to  say  that  his  country  was  a  braw  country,  it 
could  produce  oranges.  I  took  out  a  piece  o'  cake  to 
let  him  ken  that  the  land  o'  cakes  was  aye  ready  for 
his  country,  or  else  he  needna  be  here." 

Eobert  Carter's  love  for  poetry  was  always  very  great. 
He  became  familiar  with  all  the  great  poets,  and  learned 
his  favorites  by  heart,  and  retained  them  through  life. 
Gray's  Elegy  he  loved  to  repeat.  Young,  Burns,  Scott, 
and  Byron  he  quoted  at  great  length,  and  even  Homer 
and  Virgil  in  their  original  tongues. 

But  to  return  to  his  own  narrative  :  — 

"  From  a  very  early  age  the  harvest  was  a  season  of 
hard  labor.  When  not  more  than  six  or  seven  years 
old,  I  accompanied  my  elder  brother  to  the  harvest  to 
glean  behind  the  reapers.  To  pick  up,  one  by  one,  the 
golden  ears  of  wheat  or  barley  or  oats  till  our  little 
hands  were  full,  and  then  to  bind  up  the  handful  ffid 
lay  it  aside,  and  commence  again  and  again  till  the 
close  of  the  day,  with  the  back  continually  bowed  down 
till  it  was  almost  like  to  break,  was  no  easy  task.  And 
in  the  evening  to  carry  home  the  fruits  of  the  day's  la- 
bor, sometimes  a  distance  of  one  or  two  miles,  required 
no  small  effort.  Glad  were  we,  worn  out  and  weary, 
to  sit  down  to  our  evening  dish  of  oatmeal  porridge 
and  milk,  and  feel  that  our  task  for  the  day  was  done. 
During  harvest  I  had  no  opportunity  for  reading.  If 
I  attempted  to  take  a  book  in  the  evening,  I  invariably 
fell  asleep.  So  that  there  was  in  each  year  a  dreary 
blank  which  was  worse  than  lost. 

"As  soon  as  I  was  able  to  wield  a  sickle,  I  became  a 
reaper.  At  first,  I  could  only  do  half  duty,  so  that  two 
of  us  stood  for  one.     This  work  was  to  me  extremely 


22  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

painful.  My  hands  were  soft,  and  for  the  first  week  or 
two  were  sorely  bruised.  I  often  felt  as  if  the  sun 
stood  still.  And  O  what  a  relief  did  Saturday  even- 
ing bring !  The  Sabbath  was  truly  a  day  of  rest,  though 
we  were  almost  too  tired  to  enjoy  it. 

"  One  harvest,  in  order  to  see  a  little  of  the  world, 
three  of  us  set  out  on  an  excursion  to  England.  After 
an  early  breakfast,  we  walked  for  seven  or  eight  hours 
till  we  reached  the  Cheviot  Hills,  which  separated  Scot- 
land from  England.  The  weather  had  been  exceedingly 
wet ;  a  freshet,  the  largest  for  thirty-six  years,  had  del- 
uged the  valleys,  and  in  many  places  had  carried  off 
the  bridges,  and  of  course  rendered  walking  very  toil- 
some. As  we  proceeded  onwards,  we  came  to  a  moun- 
tain stream  which  had  only  a  few  minutes  before  our 
arrival  swept  away  a  bridge  of  seven  arches.  The 
people  of  the  vicinity  were  running  to  the  spot,  and 
wondering  over  the  havoc.  We  inquired  how  we  could 
proceed,  and  were  told  that  we  must  ascend  the  banks 
of  the  stream  till  it  divided  into  two,  some  miles  above, 
and  there  they  supposed  it  could  be  forded.  "We  started 
on  our  weary  way,  and  walked,  hungry  and  tired,  till 
we  were  almost  ready  to  lie  down  in  despair,  when  we 
saw  a  shepherd's  house  among  the  hills  at  a  distance. 
Thither  we  sped,  and  inquired  how  far  we  had  to  go 
before  the  river  could  be  forded,  and  were  informed 
that  it  was  only  a  short  distance  off.  The  shepherd's 
wife  asked  us  if  we  would  have  a  glass  of  milk,  and 
when  we  gladly  answered  yes,  she  presented  some 
brown  bread  and  milk,  which  seemed  the  most  deli- 
cious feast  we  had  ever  tasted.  Much  refreshed,  we 
again  sallied  forth,  and  proceeded  onwards  till  we  came 
to  the  forks  of  the  river,  where,  taking  each  other  by 
the  hand,  we  crossed  in  safety. 


HARVESTING.  23 

"  Late  that  evening  we  reached  a  farmer's  house, 
where  we  asked  for  employment,  and  were  accepted. 
We  had,  however,  to  wait  a  day  or  two  before  the  grain 
was  sufficiently  dry  for  the  sickle,  and  these  days  were 
employed  in  visiting  the  peasantry  in  the  neighborhood. 
We  were  painfully  affected  by  the  gross  ignorance  that 
prevailed.  Many  of  them  could  neither  read  nor  write, 
and  their  conversation  was  of  course  entirely  different 
from  that  of  the  same  class  in  Scotland,  though  they 
were  only  a  few  miles  from  the  border.  An  epidemic 
which  prevailed  the  previous  summer  had  carried  off 
nearly  a  third  of  the  inhabitants,  and  yet,  alas !  this 
chastening  was  in  most  cases  without  fruit.  We  shed 
many  a  tear  with  the  poor  survivors  while  they  related 
their  losses,  but  were  pained  by  their  vacant  stare  when 
we  attempted  to  point  out  to  them  the  resurrection  and 
the  life. 

"  Here  we  remained  several  weeks,  and  aided  in 
gathering  in  the  harvest.  A  quarter  of  a  century  has 
since  passed  away.  Not  one  of  the  simple  cottagers 
with  whom  we  were  thus  temporarily  associated  have  I 
ever  since  seen  or  heard  from.  Doubtless  a  large  por- 
tion of  them  have  passed  that  bourne  whence  no  trav- 
eller returns.  Did  we  aid  them  in  preparation  for  that 
momentous  change  ?  I  fear  not.  We  were  regular  in 
our  own  private  devotions,  but  I  do  not  remember  that 
we  ever  engaged  in  social  prayer  in  any  family  of  that 
neglected  vineyard. 

"  In  1822,  when  I  was  fifteen  years  of  age,  a  cousin 
who  had  a  private  school  in  the  small  borough  of  Sel- 
kirk, ten  miles  off,  invited  me  to  take  his  place  for  the 
winter  while  he  took  a  term  at  the  University  of  Edin- 
burgh. This  was  an  entirely  new  scene  to  me.  On  my 
way  to  Selkirk  I  passed  Abbotsford,  the  fairy  palace  of 


24  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Sir  Walter  Scott.  He  was  sheriff  of  Selkirk,  and  was 
known  in  our  vicinity  as  the  '  Shirra.'  Great  was  the 
love  and  reverence  in  which  he  was  held.  Many  a 
time  have  I  gazed  upon  the  lovely  scene  on  the  banks 
of  the  Tweed  where  the  Wizard  of  the  North  wrote  his 
wonderful  creations.  It  was  nearly  midway  between 
my  home  and  Selkirk.  The  winter  I  spent  in  that 
old  borough  was  one  of  great  value  to  me.  I  had 
the  charge  of  sixty  boys  and  girls,  and  it  was  to  me  a 
new  life.  I  must  have  been  a  very  unskilful  teacher, 
but  if  I  did  not  succeed  in  giving  my  pupils  much  in- 
struction, I  learned  much  myself. 

"Mr.  Campbell,  the  parish  minister,  asked  me  to  visit 
the  jail  and  give  some  instruction  to  a  young  man,  more 
sinned  against  than  sinning,  who  lay  in  his  cell  there. 
I  went  from  time  to  time,  and  found  him  ready  to  drink 
in  every  kind  of  knowledge.  I  had  never  been  in  such 
a  place  before,  and  the  sensation  was  a  very  strange 
one  when  the  jailer  opened  the  massive  doors  and  shut 
them  upon  me.  But  when  I  saw  the  hapless  youth 
gaze  upon  me  with  wistful  eyes,  and  give  me  a  hearty 
welcome,  I  felt  there  was  a  blessed  work  for  me  to  do. 
I  never  had  a  scholar  Mho  made  such  progress  in  so 
short  a  time.  He  did  not  wish  his  friends  at  home  to 
know  that  he  was  in  prison.  One  day  he  asked  me 
to  look  over  and  correct  a  letter  he  had  written  to 
his  father,  and  one  expression  in  it  afforded  me  much 
amusement :  '  My  present  situation  is  very  easy,  but 
it  is  so  confining  that  I  am  determined  to  leave  at 
Whitsunday,  when  I  hope  to  see  you.' 

"After  my  half-year  in  Selkirk,  I  returned  to  my 
loom  again.  In  the  following  winter,  1823,  I  was 
urged  to  open  an  evening  school  in  the  spare  room 
of  our  dwelling.      I  had  twenty-eight  scholars,  most 


THE   YOUNG  TEACHER.  25 

of  them  older  than  myself.  Shortly  after  we  began 
work,  a  tall,  powerful  young  man  rose  before  the 
close  of  school,  and  went  off  without  leave.  Next 
evening  I  handed  him  books  and  slate,  and  told  him 
he  could  not  continue  longer  in  my  school.  He  left 
me,  and  soon  came  back  with  a  letter  from  his  father, 
begging  me  to  take  him  back,  and  he  would  make  any 
acknowledgments  I  chose.  I  took  him  back,  and  he 
never  gave  me  any  trouble  again.  I  had  the  most  per- 
fect command  of  the  school,  and,  as  they  were  all  most 
anxious  to  learn,  much  progress  was  made.  After 
school,  I  often  studied  far  into  the  night  by  a  coal 
fire  instead  of  a  candle.  I  was  not  allowed  a  candle, 
lest  I  should  sit  too  late.  Young's  Night  Thoughts, 
especially  the  first  four  books,  I  almost  committed 
to  memory.  Forty  years  later,  after  a  long  conversa- 
tion with  Archbishop  Hughes,  I  quoted  some  lines  from 
Young.  '  Why,'  said  he,  '  Young  has  been  my  vade 
mecum  from  my  very  early  days.'  I  felt  drawn  to  the 
aged  prelate  when  I  found  he  had  drunk  at  the  same 
fountain  as  I  in  life's  morning. 

"  In  1824,  I  taught  school  at  a  little  hamlet  four 
miles  from  home,  and  twice  a  week  walked  over  the 
hills  to  meet  my  cousin,  who  heard  me  recite  in  Latin. 
I  think  I  made  more  progress  that  season  than  at  any 
other  period,  as  I  had  no  society  to  interfere  with  my 
studies.  We  held  a  prayer  meeting  in  a  shepherd's 
house  once  a  week,  when  I  was  refreshed  by  the  warm 
prayers  of  the  good  old  rustics,  who  '  knew,  and  knew 
no  more,  their  Bible  true.' 

"  In  1825,  I  opened  a  school  in  my  native  village. 
I  had  seventy  day  scholars,  twenty  at  night.  In  my 
spare  hours  I  read  the  Latin  and  Greek  classics,  and 
became  somewhat  familiar  with  the  current  literature  I 


26  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

could  reach.  The  minister  of  the  Eelief  Church,  Rev. 
David  Crawford,  had  his  Sabbath  school  in  my  school- 
house  on  Sunday  afternoon,  and  a  Bible  class  in  the 
evening,  and  he  invited  me  to  take  tea  with  him  in  the 
interval  between  the  two  sessions.  This  proved  a  great 
help  to  me,  as  he  was  a  man  of  culture  and  refinement, 
and  his  library  was  open  to  me.  His  wife  was  a  lineal 
descendant  of  the  great  lieformer,  John  Knox,  and  he 
sent  me,  after  I  came  to  America,  a  genealogical  tree 
of  her  family,  traced  down  through  the  three  hundred 
years.  He  was  afterwards  called  to  Edinburgh  to  be  a 
Secretary  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church. 

"  During  this  period,  Professor  Pillans  of  Edinburgh 
gave  a  course  of  lectures  to  the  teachers  of  Scotland. 
Anxious  to  hear  these  lectures,  I  walked  to  Edinburgh, 
a  distance  of  thirty  miles.  I  left  home  on  a  Monday 
morning,  a  few  minutes  after  midnight,  and  reached 
Edinburgh  at  ten  o'clock,  in  time  to  hear  the  first  lec- 
ture. The  course  was  very  suggestive  to  me,  and  en- 
abled me  to  turn  a  new  leaf.  On  Saturday  at  1  P.  M. 
I  started  for  home,  and  reached  it  before  midnight. 
Professor  Pillans  was  the  fellow  student  of  Lord  P>yron 
and  Sir  Walter  Scott,  and  gave  me  many  incidents 
of  early  days.  He  afterwards  proved  a  most  valuable 
friend." 

Mr.  Walter  Carter  writes  the  following  reminiscence 
of  this  time  :  — 

"  Tlie  school  was  in  a  stone  house  near  the  '  Green,'  on 
the  Main  Street.  The  large  room  was  full  of  busy  scholars, 
and  the  most  rigid  discipline,  as  in  all  the  Scottish  schools  of 
that  day,  was  maintained.  As  winter  came  on,  there  were 
signs  of  excitement  in  the  school,  as  the  habit  was  to  bolt 
out  the  master  on  the  shortest  day,  and  have  a  holiday. 
When  we  reached  the  school  that  morning,  we  found  the 


WALKS   TO   PEEBLES.  27 

scholars  standing  outside  tlie  door  greatly  elated.  Some 
boys  had  barred  the  door,  and  liad  come  out  through  a 
back  window,  thinking  all  was  secure.  Soon  the  master 
appeared  on  the  street,  with  his  usual  alert  step,  and  in- 
quired the  cause  of  the  uproar.  He  was  informed  that 
the  door  was  barred.  He  went  round  to  the  rear,  and, 
putting  a  boy  in  the  window,  told  him,  in  a  voice  that 
could  not  be  gainsaid,  to  unbar  the  door.  A  more  disap- 
pointed and  crestfallen  lot  never  defiled  into  school.  It 
was  very  soon  understood  that  one  will  there  was  law, 
and  no   appeal." 

To  resume  the  narrative  of  Eobert  Carter :  — 
"After  three  years'  work  in  my  native  village  (1825- 
1828)  I  walked  one  Friday  afternoon  to  Melrose  to  visit 
a  friend  who  was  a  student  of  theology.  He  received 
me  very  kindly,  asked  me  to  read  to  him  in  Latin  and 
Greek,  and  then  told  me  he  had  received  a  letter  from 
Peebles,  where  he  had  taught  for  two  years.  The  Rec- 
tor of  the  Grammar  School  in  wliich  he  had  taught 
wanted  a  young  man  to  fill  the  place  he  had  occupied, 
and  he  urged  me  to  go  the  following  morning  and  apply 
for  it.  I  told  him  I  had  not  been  at  college,  or  even  at 
grammar  school,  and  that  I  was  certainly  unfit  to  take 
that  place.  He  replied,  '  You  read  the  classics  more 
fluently  than  I  do,  and  if  you  go  I  will  guarantee  you 
will  get  it.'  I  started  the  next  morning  at  five,  and 
walked  twenty-five  miles,  and  reached  Peebles  before 
twelve.  The  Rector  took  me  into  his  library,  gave  me 
one  book  and  took  another  for  himself,  and  asked  me 
to  read  and  translate.  I  did  so.  Volume  after  volume 
we  took  and  read,  and  then  he  said,  'When  can  you 
come  ? '  I  told  him  I  had  a  school  of  seventy  scholars, 
and  must  dispose  of  it  first,  but  that  I  would  come  on 
Thursday  week.    '  That  will  do,'  he  said,  and  then  invited 


28  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

me  to  stay  to  dinner.  I  then  left  him  and  walked  the 
twenty-five  miles  I  had  traversed  in  the  morning.  I 
was  then  nearly  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  full  of 
hope.  I  reached  home  about  ten,  as  my  father  was 
engaged  in  family  prayers,  in  which  I  had  a  large  share 
After  we  rose  from  our  knees,  father,  mother,  brothers, 
and  sisters,  thirteen  in  all,  surrounded  me,  and  said 
they  were  glad  I  had  returned,  as  they  had  feared  I 
would  go  to  Peebles.  I  told  them  I  had  been  at  Pee- 
bles, and  was  going  back  on  Thursday  week  to  commence 
work  there.  After  securing  a  teacher  for  my  school  in 
Earlston,  I  began  a  new  life.  The  school  had  forty 
boarding  pupils,  and  nearly  as  many  more  from  the 
town.  Many  of  the  boys  were  sons  of  the  nobility  and 
gentry,  high-spirited  youths,  who  were  restive  under 
control.  The  Rector  was  advanced  in  years,  and  the 
management  of  the  boys  devolved  largely  upon  me. 
The  tutor  who  had  preceded  me  had  left  the  school 
because  he  could  not  control  the  boys.  They  plagued 
him  so  that  he  sometimes  told  them  with  tears  that 
they  would  break  his  heart ;  but  there  was  nothing 
that  they  liked  better  than  to  break  his  heart,  and  his 
tears  did  not  move  them. 

"  The  first  morning  that  I  was  in  charge,  the  boys 
behaved  in  a  most  uproarious  manner,  dancing  and 
shouting  about  the  room,  heedless  of  my  commands 
for  order.  I  took  the  ringleader  by  the  collar  and  laid 
him  prostrate  on  the  floor,  saying,  '  Lie  there,  sir,  until 
Mr.  Sloan  comes  in.'  He  saw  that  I  was  not  to  be 
trifled  with,  and  begged  to  be  allowed  to  rise.  I  told 
him  he  could  do  so  if  he  was  ready  to  behave  himself, 
and  he  arose  very  meekly,  and  the  others  quietly  took 
their  places  at  their  desks.  From  that  time  I  had  no 
trouble  in  securing  order.    But  the  work  was  very  con- 


EDINBURGH   UNIVERSITY.  29 

fining,  as  T  was  with  the  boys  almost  day  and  night, 
sleeping  in  one  of  the  dormitories.  I  saw  the  stars 
but  twice  that  winter.  We  were  in  the  school-room 
from  seven  to  eight,  from  nine  to  twelve,  from  two  to 
four,  and  from  six  to  eight.  Supper  and  prayers  were 
before  nine,  when  we  saw  the  boys  to  their  rooms. 
After  supper  I  studied  far  into  the  night,  as  I  had  to 
prepare  for  the  Eector's  classes  as  well  as  my  own,  that 
I  might  assist  the  boys  with  their  lessons. 

"  In  stormy  weather  we  had  to  keep  them  within 
doors  all  day,  and  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  keep  them 
out  of  mischief.  The  Eector  never  found  fault  with 
anything  I  did,  always  meeting  me  with  a  pleasant 
smile ;  but  neither  did  he  express  approval,  and  I  feared 
I  was  not  giving  satisfaction,  and  I  wrote  home  that  I 
must  look  for  employment  elsewhere,  as  I  knew  I 
should  not  be  wanted  in  Peebles  after  my  year  expired. 
One  day  the  Rector  said  to  me,  '  Next  year  your  salary 
will  be  forty  pounds.'  This  was  nearly  double  the  first 
year :  those  were  the  days  of  small  salaries. 

"  At  the  close  of  my  second  year,  I  resolved  to  go  to 
Edinburgh  College.  The  dear  old  Eector  entreated  me 
to  stay  with  him,  said  I  was  a  better  scholar  than  he 
was,  and  yet  he  had  always  been  a  successful  teacher. 
He  offered  to  make  the  terms  to  suit  me ;  but  I  felt  the 
necessity  of  attending  some  higher  classes  in  college,  so 
I  bade  him  an  affectionate  farewell. 

"  The  classes  in  Edinburgh  were  very  full  that  term 
(1830).  Shortly  after  my  entrance,  Professor  Pillans 
called  up  Lubienski,  a  Pole,  and  myself,  to  hold  a  con- 
versation in  Latin  before  the  class  (the  educated  Poles 
were  taught  to  converse  freely  in  Latin).  He  stood  on 
one  side  of  the  room,  and  I  on  the  other. 

"  I  had  fortunately  read  a  volume  of  colloquies  by 


30  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Corderius,  and  acquired  some  knowledge  of  familiar 
phrases,  and  therefore  succeeded  better  than  I  feared ; 
but  I  was  so  frightened  that  I  had  to  lay  hold  of  a  chair 
in  front  of  me  to  steady  myself. 

"  In  midwinter  the  parish  school  of  Smailholm,  six 
miles  from  my  home,  became  vacant.  I  went  thirty-six 
miles  from  Edinburgh  to  apply  for  it ;  the  clergyman 
knew  that  I  was  a  member  of  the  Secession  Church,  and 
intimated  that  I  need  not  apply.  I  felt  this  deeply,  and 
said  to  my  father,  '  I  shall  not  apply  for  a  situation  in 
my  own  land  again ;  I  will  go  to  America,  where  my 
religious  denomination  will  not  stand  in  the  way  of  my 
progress.' 

"  AVhen  I  returned  to  my  classes.  Professor  Pillans 
read  out  my  name  at  the  close  of  the  hour,  and  asked 
me  to  stay  and  see  him.  He  asked  me  if  I  was  going 
to  Smailholm.  I  said,  '  Xo.'  '  What  was  the  matter  ? 
I  was  sure  you  would  get  it'  I  told  him  I  was  not 
even  allowed  to  apply,  because  I  was  a  dissenter. 
'  I  am  glad  of  it,'  said  he.  '  I  have  received  a  letter 
from  Lord  Althorp,  the  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer, 
asking  me  to  send  him  a  tutor  for  his  son,  and  I  will 
send  you.  He  is  to  cruise  two  years  in  the  Mediter- 
ranean ;  will  visit  Italy,  Egypt,  the  Holy  Land,  Greece, 
and  other  parts.  It  will  make  a  man  of  you.'  I  told 
him  that  if  I  had  known  it  three  days  before  I  should 
have  accepted,  but  now  my  mind  was  made  up ;  I  was 
going  to  America ;  that  my  father  had  eleven  children, 
and  I  wanted  to  prepare  the  way  for  them.  He  said 
to  me,  '  If  I  were  not  too  old,  I  would  go  to  America 
also.  It  is  the  place  for  young  men.  I  am  acquainted 
with  the  good  old  Quaker,  Dr.  Griscom,  who  is  at  the 
head  of  the  Hi^h  School  in  Xew  York,  and  I  will 
give  you  a  letter  to  him   that  may  help  you.'     That 


LEAVING  SCOTLAND.  31 

letter  and  several  others  he  gave  me  did  me  great 
good. 

"  A  few  days  later,  I  was  again  asked  to  stay  after 
class,  and  Professor  Pillans  told  me  that  the  rector  of 
an  academy  in  the  Isle  of  Man  had  died,  and  he 
would  recommend  me  to  the  place  if  I  wished ;  but  I 
declined." 

It  may  be  added  here,  that  many  of  the  letters  of 
recommendation  received  by  Mr.  Carter  at  this  time  are 
still  extant,  and  all  speak  in  the  highest  terms  of  his 
scholarship  and  character.  There  is  no  faint  praise. 
The  Edinburgh  professors,  Mr.  Sloan  of  Peebles,  and 
his  clergyman  in  Earlston,  all  express  unmeasured 
commendation.  Professor  Pillans  in  one  letter  speaks 
of  his  "perfect  regularity  and  uniformly  correct  and 
exemplary  deportment,"  and  adds,  that "  he  had  acquitted 
himself  remarkably  well  in  public  examinations,  and 
gave  proofs  of  great  industry  and  proficiency."  In 
another  he  says,  "  It  gives  me  much  pleasure  to  state 
that  he  has  throughout  distinguished  himself  as  one  of 
the  ablest  and  most  diligent  of  my  pupils." 

From  Mr.  Sloan  and  the  clergyman  of  Peebles  came 
letters  of  the  most  cordial  praise,  and  it  was  added, 
"  He  is  much  beloved  by  the  boys  under  his  charge, 
which  I  consider  no  small  recommendation  in  a 
teacher." 


CHAPTER     II. 

"  TN  March,  1831,  I  engaged  my  passage  in  the  ship 
A  '  Francis,'  that  was  to  sail  from  Greenock  on  the 
4th  of  April.  I  left  Edinburgh,  and  went  to  bid  adieu 
to  my  native  village.  The  voyage  was  a  very  different 
thing  then  from  what  it  is  now.  The  Atlantic  seemed 
wider ;  the  new  land  less  known. 

"  One  good  woman  took  me  aside,  and  kindly  urged 
me  to  take  a  wife  with  me  to  America.  '  Ye  11  get 
naething  there  but  a  Yankee,  and  they  're  a'  black.'  The 
separation  from  home  and  friends  was  most  trying. 

"  At  six  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  my  departure, 
about  thirty  acquaintances  and  friends  assembled  in 
my  home,  and  many  of  them  were  deeply  affected. 
As  I  arose  to  go,  my  mother,  who  had  embraced  me 
most  tenderly,  fainted  and  fell  on  the  sofa.  My  friends 
said,  '  You  had  better  go  now  before  she  returns  to 
consciousness.'  My  father  and  many  friends  accom- 
panied me.  They  dropped  off  two  by  two,  till,  after 
walking  ten  miles,  my  father  and  a  very  dear  friend 
alone  were  left.  "We  parted  in  silence.  I  gazed  after 
them  till  they  reached  the  top  of  a  little  hill,  and  grad- 
ually disappeared  from  view.  I  then  sat  down  by  the 
sQvery  Tweed  and  gave  full  vent  to  my  feelings.  I  was 
alone  with  God.  In  a  more  fervent  prayer  than  per- 
haps I  had  ever  offered  before,  I  commended  myself  and 
my  father's  family  to  His  keeping,  washed  my  face  in 


INCIDENTS   OF  THE    VOYAGE.  33 

the  Tweed,  wiped  my  face  with  my  handkerchief,  and 
went  on  my  way.  In  the  afternoon  I  reached  Peebles, 
where  I  met  with  a  warm  reception  from  my  dear 
friends,  and  the  following  day  went  to  Edinburgh,  and 
from  there  to  Greenock.  There  was  no  one  on  board 
the  *  Francis '  whom  I  knew,  save  one,  a  gardener, 
Itichard  Davidson,  eight  years  older  than  I,  who  had 
attended  a  prayer-meeting  with  me  in  my  native  vil- 
lage, and  was  very  dear  to  me.  We  left  Greenock  on 
Monday,  the  4th  of  April ;  my  friend  had  his  father 
and  mother  and  two  sisters  with  him.  There  was  an 
excellent  family  of  five,  the  Ainslees,  nearly  related  to 
him,  who  formed  a  circle  of  friends  that  showed  me 
great  kindness. 

"  On  the  first  Sabbath  morning,  my  friend  said  to 
me,  *  There  are  many  pious  people  on  board,  but  there 
is  no  clergyman.  We  ought  to  have  a  service,  and 
you  must  take  the  lead.'  I  remonstrated,  but  there 
was  no  one  else,  and  he  insisted  on  my  opening  the 
meeting  with  prayer,  after  singing  a  psalm.  In  the 
prayer  I  felt  that  we  were  alone  with  God.  All 
around  me  seemed  to  have  the  same  feeling,  and  there 
was  a  Bochim.  God  was  there  of  a  truth ;  we  then 
read  a  lecture  on  the  Acts  by  Dr.  John  Dick,  of  Glas- 
gow, and  my  friend  closed  with  prayer  and  singing. 
We  were  six  weeks  on  the  voyage,  and  each  Sabbath 
had  a  similar  service.  I  had  reason  to  believe  that 
some  were  born  again  on  board. 

"  Captain  Peck,  who  was  the  principal  owner  of  the 
ship,  took  me  aside  before  we  landed,  and  said  :  '  This 
is  one  of  the  most  pleasant  voyages  I  ever  made,  and 
I  attribute  it  in  great  part  to  your  influence.  If  I 
can  do  you  any  service,  I  will  be  glad  to  do  it.'  I 
held  him  to  his  word.    Before  a  year  had  passed,  I  went 


34  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

to  him  and  told  him  I  wanted  to  bring  out  my  father 
and  family,  twelve  in  all,  and  I  would  pay  him  when 
they  landed.  '  I  will  gladly  do  it  for  you,'  he  said, 
'  though  I  have  always  insisted  on  payment  in  advance.' 
I  saved  enough  the  first  year  to  pay  for  all,  and  the 
same  week,  one  year  later,  they  were  all  with  me  in 
New  York." 

Mr.  Carter  never  lost  sight  of  his  fellow  passengers 
of  the  "  Francis."  Many  of  them  were  his  lifelong 
friends.  One  of  them  was  a  little  boy  of  five  or  six 
years,  of  whom  he  made  quite  a  pet,  and  who  used  to 
walk  the  deck  with  him,  holding  his  hand.  This  little 
George  Ainslee  grew  up  into  a  noble,  self-sacrificing 
man,  a  devoted  missionary  to  the  Indians,  and,  when 
his  mission  was  broken  up  by  the  war,  becoming  an 
equally  devoted  minister  of  the  Presbyterian  Home 
Mission  Board. 

Mr.  Carter  used  often  to  relate  an  amusing  incident 
of  the  voyage.  To  beguile  the  monotony  of  sea  life,  the 
young  men  formed  a  debating  society,  and  were  one 
day  assembled  near  the  bulwarks,  when  suddenly  there 
came  a  cry  from  the  other  side  of  the  ship,  "Eichard! 
Richard'"  and,  looking  across,  they  saw  an  old  wo- 
man clinging  to  a  rope  that  hung  from  the  rigging. 
"  Something  is  the  matter  with  your  mother,  Eichard." 
The  young  man  crossed  to  inquire  into  the  difficulty. 
"  What 's  the  matter,  mother  ? "  "  O,  they  're  a'  gaun  to 
the  one  side  of  the  ship,  and  it  is  going  to  coup  [upset], 
and  I  'm  just  haudin'  doon  wi'  a'  my  micht."  It  was  irre- 
sistibly comic,  the  idea  of  the  frail  little  woman,  weigh- 
ing perhaps  ninety  pounds,  holding  down  the  great  ship, 
and  the  laughter  that  ensued  broke  up  the  debating 
society  for  that  day. 

Many  of  that  little  company  of  Scottish  emigrants 


PASSENGERS  ON  THE  "FRANCIS."  35 

sought  homes  near  together  in  Saratoga  County,  New 
York,  where  they  formed  a  little  colony,  following 
their  old  customs,  and  had  a  flourishing  church  where 
their  beloved  Scotch  version  of  the  Psalms  was  sung. 
Thither  Mr.  Carter  took  his  father's  family  in  the  fol- 
lowing year,  when  they  came  to  America.  The  older 
people  always  clung  lovingly  to  the  memories  of  their 
home  beyond  the  water,  and  always  maintained  that 
there  was  nothing  in  America  that  was  quite  equal 
to  what  they  had  in  Scotland,  "  unless  it  were  the 
moon." 

The  sole  male  survivor  of  Mr.  Carter's  fellow  voy- 
agers on  the  "  Francis  "  is  Mr.  Eichard  Davidson,  who 
settled  in  Troy,  New  York,  and  opened  a  classical 
school  there.  They  had  occasional  affectionate  inter- 
course in  after  life,  never  losing  sight  of  each  other. 
In  the  last  year  of  Mr.  Carter's  life  this  old  friend  vis- 
ited him.  Mr.  Davidson  was  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-nine,  but,  though  bowed  under  the  weight  of 
years,  his  mental  powers  were  clear  and  vigorous. 
He  writes :  — 

"  Mr.  Carter  was  naturally  very  cheerful  and  happy,  and 
therefore  added  much  to  our  enjoyment  during  the  long 
voyage.  .  .  .  We  were  both  Commissionei's  to  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  meeting  in  Baltimore, 
in  1872.  It  is  customary  at  these  gatherings  to  designate 
members  of  the  Assembly  to  conduct  religious  services  in 
different  parts  of  the  city  on  the  Sabbath.  When  I  met 
Mr.  Carter  on  Saturday  evening  he  with  a  grave  counte- 
nance said,  '  What  do  you  think  they  are  going  to  do  with 
me  1  They  are  going  to  send  me  to  the  penitentiary.'  On 
meeting  him  on  Monday  morning  I  remarked,  '  They  did 
not  keep  you  in  confinement  long.*  '  No,  I  got  out  on 
account  of  good  behavior.'  " 


36  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

To  resume  Mr.  Carter's  narrative  :  — 

"  When  I  reached  New  York,  a  city  at  that  time 
[May  16,  1831]  of  two  hundred  thousand  inhabitants, 
I  did  not  know  a  person  in  it.  There  was  a  clergyman 
whose  boys  I  had  taught  in  Peebles,  who  had  come  to 
New  York  the  preceding  year.  I  had  letters  for  him 
addressed  to  the  care  of  a  merchant  at  407  Broadway. 
I  went  to  that  place,  and  found  the  owner  at  home. 
He  told  me  that  the  minister  for  whom  I  inquired  had 
gone  to  Washington  County,  N.  Y.,  but  that  he  would 
forward  the  letters  to  him.  He  asked  me  if  I  had  just 
landed.  I  said  I  had.  He  then  asked  me  what  I 
meant  to  do  here.  I  told  him  I  was  a  teacher.  He 
shook  his  head :  '  Had  you  been  a  mason,  or  a  carpenter, 
or  a  blacksmith,  I  could  have  got  you  employment  at 
twelve  shillings  a  day ;  but  there  is  no  such  encourage- 
ment for  a  schoolmaster.'  I  showed  him  some  of  my 
letters  of  introduction,  and  asked  where  I  could  find 
the  parties  addressed.  He  took  up  the  letter  for  Dr. 
Griscom,  and  said,  '  My  son  David  is  a  pupil  there,  I 
will  introduce  you  to  the  Doctor.'  The  High  School 
was  in  Crosby  Street  near  Grand  Street.  We  went 
there  and  saw  the  Doctor.  He  was  engaged  with  his 
class,  but  he  took  the  letter,  and  after  reading  it  he 
took  me  very  affectionately  by  the  hand  and  said,  '  I 
welcome  thee  to  our  country ;  we  greatly  need  such  as 
thee.  Come  to-night  at  six  o'clock,  and  take  a  cup  of 
tea  with  me,  and  I  will  introduce  thee  to  some  of  my 
friends.'  As  we  came  down  stairs,  my  friend  said  to 
me,  '  Perhaps  you  are  going  to  do  here  after  all :  the 
Doctor  has  great  influence.'  I  made  answer,  '  I  've 
got  to  do.' 

"  I  had  never  met  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Friends 
before,  but  I  was  impressed  with  the  idea  that  I  must  be 


DR.  GRISCOM.  37 

very  punctual  and  exact  in  my  dealings  with  them,  so 
six  o'clock  found  me  walking  up  and  down  before  the 
door,  and  just  as  the  clock  struck  the  hour  my  hand 
was  on  the  door  bell.  The  good  Doctor  had  a  few 
friends  at  table  beside  his  own  family,  and  he  intro- 
duced me  very  affectionately,  saying,  '  This  is  friend 
Robert  Carter  from  Edinburgh.  He  brings  letters  from 
Professor  Pillans.  We  gladly  welcome  him.'  Never 
can  I  forget  the  kindness  shown  me  then  and  always 
by  this  noble  and  generous  man. 

"  I  had  been  taught  in  Scotland  that  it  was  good  table 
manners  to  refuse  the  delicacies  offered,  and  wait  to 
be  pressed  before  accepting ;  but  I  found  that  this  sys- 
tem did  not  obtain  here,  and  that  a  dainty  once  refused 
was  not  offered  again,  so  that,  if  I  wanted  my  supper,  I 
must  eat  what  was  set  before  me.  This  struck  me  as 
being  much  more  sensible  than  our  Scottish  plan.  The 
conversation  at  table  was  of  a  high  order,  simple,  cul- 
tured, Christian.  I  could  not  have  had  a  finer  speci- 
men of  an  American  home  than  this  first  one  I  entered. 
The  conversation  turned  upon  the  literary  institutions 
of  Scotland,  her  eminent  men,  and  the  general  diffusion 
of  education  among  the  masses  of  the  people.  On  these 
subjects  1  was  quite  at  home,  and  the  circle  around 
us  was  evidently  interested  in  it.  I  have  often  since 
reflected,  how  kind  and  considerate  he  was  to  turn  our 
attention  to  subjects  with  which  he  knew  me  to  be 
familiar.  After  a  delightful  evening,  I  returned  to  my 
lodgings,  and  poured  out  my  heart  in  gratitude  to  the 
Father  of  mercies,  who  had  disposed  strangers  to  take 
me  so  kindly  by  the  hand. 

"  A  day  or  two  later  Dr.  Griscom  introduced  me  to 
the  Hon.  Gulian  C  Verplanck,  and  other  influential 
friends.     Mr,  Verplanck   examined  me  in  Greek  and 


38  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Latin,  and  the  Doctor  and  he  gave  me  a  letter  to  Profes- 
sor Anthon  of  Columbia  College,  asking  him  to  examine 
me  and  report  to  them.  When  I  delivered  this  letter, 
the  Professor  asked  me  to  meet  him  at  four  o'clock  at 
his  house  in  the  college  building.  I  did  so.  He  gave 
me  one  book  and  took  another,  and  asked  me  to  read 
and  translate.  After  reading  portions  from  the  Latin 
authors,  he  did  the  same  with  the  Greek,  and  ques- 
tioned me  on  various  subjects.  He  was  greatly  pleased 
because  I  used  the  Continental  method  of  pronuncia- 
tion taught  in  Edinburgh,  but  not  yet  introduced  into 
this  country.  He  then  said, '  There  is  a  highly  respect- 
able academy  at  Jamaica  in  which  there  is  a  vacancy. 
I  will  recommend  you  as  classical  instructor  if  you 
would  like  to  go  there.' 

"  This  offer  chilled  my  heart.  I  knew  of  no  other 
Jamaica  save  the  island  in  the  West  Indies.  Several 
young  men  from  my  native  village  had  gone  there  and 
had  grown  rich,  but  had  become  immoral  and  profligate. 
One  of  them  returned  home  for  a  visit,  patted  me  on 
the  head,  and  said  to  my  father,  '  If  you  will  give  me 
this  boy,  I  will  make  a  man  of  him.'  My  dear  father 
replied,  •  I  would  sooner  lay  him  in  the  kirkyard  than 
send  him  to  Jamaica.  I  value  the  favor  of  God  more 
than  all  this  world  can  give  me.' 

"  I  need  not  say  that  I  declined  the  offer,  and  said 
I  would  rather  take  a  humbler  position  in  New  York. 
He  told  me  he  thought  that  I  was  right ;  that  New 
York  was  the  best  place  for  a  young  man.  He  then 
said,  '  Mr.  Cairnes,  a  countryman  of  yours,  who  has 
been  one  of  our  teachers,  has  had  a  hemorrhage  and 
will  never  teach  again  :  I  will  give  you  his  class  in  the 
Grammar  School  of  Columbia  College.  Come  to-mor- 
row at  nine,  and  begin  your  work.'    I  then  asked  if  he 


THE   HIGH  SCHOOL.  39 

would  give  me  a  letter  to  the  good  friends  who  had 
sent  me  to  Lim.  He  did  so,  sealed  it  up,  and  gave 
it  to  me.^ 

"  I  had  been  teaching  a  few  days  at  the  Grammar 
School  when  another  professor  came  into  my  room  and 
told  me  he  wished  to  introduce  me  to  a  countryman  of 
mine,  who  had  two  sons  in  the  school.  He  took  me 
into  an  adjoining  room,  and  the  gentleman  received  me 
very  kindly,  and  invited  me  to  tea.  After  tea,  he  pro- 
posed to  give  me  a  home  at  his  own  house  on  condition 
that  I  would  aid  his  boys  in  preparing  their  lessons  in 
the  evenings.  This  suited  my  purpose,  and  aided  me  in 
bringing  out  my  father's  family.  A  few  days  later  I 
was  invited  by  Mr.  Verplanck  and  ]\Ir.  Murray  to  meet 
them  at  four  o'clock  p.  m.  They  told  me  that  the  Trus- 
tees of  the  High  School  had  unanimously  elected  me  to 
become  Classical  Instructor  in  that  institution.  I  con- 
sulted Professor  Anthon,  and  he  said  it  was  a  better 
position  than  he  could  give  me,  and  advised  me  to 
accept  it.  After  this  I  recommended  Messrs.  Chisholm, 
Penman,  Henderson,  and  Thomson  to  the  Grammar 
School  of  Columbia  College,  and  they  found  employ- 
ment there.  For  years  the  school  was  supplied  with 
young  Scotchmen  as  teachers. 

"  The  High  School  was  then  on  the  wane,  and  it  was 
not  long  till  it  was  discontinued.  Mr.  Pi.  Smith,  then 
superintendent  of  the  lower  department,  formed  a  part- 
nership with  me,  and  we  opened  a  school  on  the  corner 
of  Broadway  and  Grand  Street  All  the  pupils  that 
were  with  me  in  the  High  School  save  one  came  there. 

1  Mr.  Carter  did  not  know  the  contents  of  this  letter  for  many 
years,  but  it  finally  rame  into  his  possession  at  the  death  of  Mr.  Ver- 
planck. It  was  couched  in  the  most  complimentary  terms  as  to  his 
scholarship  and  abilities. 


40  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

I  had  some  excellent  boys,  who  afterwards  took  high 
positions  in  the  world.  One,  the  Hon.  Schuyler  Colfax, 
became  Vice-President  of  the  United  States ;  another,  a 
general  in  the  army ;  a  third,  a  leading  financier  of 
New  York ;  a  fourth,  a  prominent  clergyman  in  this 
city  :   and  others  became  useful  and  honored  men." 

Mr.  Carter  was  through  life  remarkable  for  his  social 
qualities  ;  he  was  interested  in  others,  and  expected 
them  to  be  interested  in  him,  and  hLs  expectation  was 
almost  invariably  realized.  The  friendly  hand  that  he 
so  frankly  extended  to  others  received  a  cordial  grasp 
in  return.  "  He  that  hath  friends,  must  show  himself 
friendly."  Dr.  Guthrie  used  to  say  that  he  had  noticed 
that  everybody,  men,  women,  and  children,  liked  to  be 
spoken  to,  and  wherever  he  went  he  acted  on  this  prin- 
ciple, and  was  always  kindly  received.  Mr.  Carter  was 
of  the  same  mind.  The  people  he  met  on  his  first  day 
in  New  York,  like  the  passengers  on  the  good  ship 
"  Francis,"  were  his  friends  for  life,  and  their  children 
after  them.  The  relationship  between  him  and  Dr. 
Griscom  was  like  that  between  father  and  son.  Most 
tender  and  true  was  his  love  to  the  man  whom  he  es- 
teemed as  his  benefactor.  He  had  a  letter  of  introduc- 
tion from  Edinburgh  for  the  Eev.  Dr.  Stark,  and  the 
first  building  he  entered  in  New  York  was  a  store, 
where  he  stopped  to  inquire  for  his  address.  The  pro- 
prietor, Mr.  Eobert  Marshall,  exchanged  glances  with 
his  young  wife,  to  whom  he  had  been  married  the  week 
before,  and  said,  "  He  is  our  pastor,"  and  offered  to  go 
with  him  to  Dr.  Stark's  house.  When  Mr.  Carter  lay 
on  his  death-bed,  fifty-eight  years  later,  this  same  friend 
called  to  see  him,  and  as  ]Mr.  Carter  took  his  hand  in 
parting,  he  said  to  him  with  emotion,  "  This  is  the  same 


EARLY   FKIENDS   IN  NEW   YORK.  41 

hand  I  clasped  on  my  first  day  in  America,"  and  the 
two  friends  shed  tears  of  affection  together.  A  few 
months  later  Mr.  Marshall  followed  Mr.  Carter  to  the 
eternal  city.  Can  we  not  imagine  the  renewed  hand- 
clasping  in  the  land  where  partings  are  no  more  ? 

Dr.  Stark  also  was  a  warm  friend  as  long  as  he  lived. 
When  Mr.  Carter  entered  into  business  three  years  later, 
he  said  to  him,  "  1  know  your  capital  is  small.  If  at 
any  time  a  few  hundreds  would  be  a  help  to  you,  I  will 
gladly  lend  them  without  interest."  Mr.  Carter  never 
required  this  aid,  but  felt  himself  greatly  indebted  to 
Dr.  Stark  for  advice,  for  kindly  words  of  encouragement 
to  himself  and  indorsement  to  others. 

Often  in  after  life  Mr.  Carter  spoke  of  the  solitary 
feeling  that  came  over  him  as  he  laid  his  head  upon  his 
pillow  on  his  first  night  in  the  New  World.  He  re- 
membered that  he  was  alone  in  this  great  city ;  that  if 
he  should  die  that  night,  there  would  be  none  to  mourn 
him  ;  that  those  who  loved  him  would  not  know  of  his 
death  till  many  weeks  should  pass  away.  Then  the 
thought  of  the  loving  Father,  who  was  as  near  him 
in  New  York  as  to  his  dear  ones  three  thousand  miles 
away,  whose  watchful  eye  never  slept,  and  whose  ten- 
der care  was  ever  about  him,  comforted  his  drooping 
heart.  It  was  the  same  thought,  beautifully  expressed 
by  the  Quaker  poet,  born  the  same  year  as  himself,  — 

"  I  know  not  where  His  islands  lift 
Their  fronded  palms  in  air  ; 
I  only  know  I  cannot  drift 
Beyond  His  love  and  care." 

And  so  he  laid  him  down  and  slept,  and  awaked,  for 
the  Lord  sustained  him. 

On  the  morning  of  his  first  Sabbath  in  America,  he 
inquired  at  his  boarding-house  where  he  could  find  a 


42  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Scotch  church.  "  You  mean  the  Scotch  Church  ?  It  is 
in  Cedar  Street,  and  Dr.  McElroy  is  its  pastor."  He 
went  there,  and  from  that  day  till  the  close  of  his  life 
it  was  his  church  home,  and  became  dear  to  him  as  the 
apple  of  his  eye.  Dr.  McElroy  was  then  at  the  zenith 
of  his  reputation,  a  most  earnest  and  eloquent  preacher, 
full  of  zeal  and  fire.  He  preached  entirely  without 
notes,  not  even  writing  his  sermons,  but  preparing  them 
with  extreme  care,  and  delivering  them  verbatim  et  lit- 
eratim. Sometimes  in  delivery  he  would  substitute  a 
synonymous  word  for  the  one  he  had  intended,  but 
was  never  satisfied  till  he  had  gone  back  and  used 
the  very  word  he  had  chosen  in  preparation.  He  was 
a  most  tender-hearted  friend,  and  greatly  beloved  in 
his  congregation. 

A  few  Sundays  later,  Mr.  Carter  entered  the  Scotch 
Church  Sunday  school,  and  was  soon  one  of  the  most 
active  teachers,  and  leader  of  the  teachers'  meeting.  In 
1837  he  was  made  Superintendent,  a  position  he  filled 
for  more  than  thirty  years.  In  1847  he  was  made  an 
elder  in  the  church. 

It  was  in  this  Sunday  school  that  Mr.  Carter  first 
met  her  who  was  destined  to  be  for  more  than  fifty 
years  his  helper,  tried  and  true,  in  the  battle  of  life. 
None  but  himself  and  his  children  could  know  what 
a  power  was  in  that  gentle,  quiet  life  that  was  lived 
beside  his,  nor  how  strong  was  the  influence  exercised 
over  him  by  his  wife.  The  heart  of  her  husband  could 
safely  trust  in  her. 

Miss  Jane  Thomson  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  Mr. 
Samuel  Thomson,  an  old  and  highly  respected  citizen  of 
New  York,  an  active  and  honored  elder  of  the  Scotch 
Church.  Mr.  Thomson  was  a  native  of  Maryland, 
whence  he  removed  to  New  York  in  1804.     He  was 


HIS   MARRIAGE.  43 

of  Scotch  Irish  descent,  his  ancestors  coming  from  the 
North  of  Ireland  to  America  in  1754.  His  father, 
Hugh  Thomson,  his  grandfather,  and  his  great-grand- 
father were  buried  in  the  Piney  Creek  Presbyterian 
Church  graveyard,  Taneytown,  Aid.  He  married,  in 
1807,  Ann,  daughter  of  Archibald  Strean,  who  had 
come  from  Belfast,  Ireland,  in  1798.  Of  this  noble 
and  excellent  couple  it  may  be  said,  "  None  knew 
them  but  to  love  them  ;  none  named  them  but  to 
praise."  The  family  were  thoroughly  identified  with 
the  Scotch  Church.  As  I\Ir.  Thomson's  children  mar- 
ried and  settled  in  life,  the  connection  was  continued, 
and  at  one  time  thirteen  pews  in  that  church  were 
occupied  by  his  descendants.  Miss  Thomson's  parents 
and  grandfather  being  members  of  that  church,  she 
was  from  infancy  a  baptized  member,  entered  into 
full  communion  there,  as  did  her  children  after  her, 
and  in  all  her  seventy-six  years  she  never  had  any 
other  church  home.  She  would  not  have  hesitated  to 
say  of  it,  "  If  I  forget  thee,  let  my  right  hand  forget 
its  cunning,  and  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my 
mouth."  Those  who  knew  Miss  Thomson  in  her  youth 
loved  to  speak  of  her  great  beauty,  and  her  sweet  and 
winning  ways.  Those  who  only  knew  her  when  her 
benevolent  face  was  framed  by  soft  silvery  curls  can 
hardly  believe  that  the  beauty  of  youth  exceeded  that 
of  age.  And  surely  the  youthful  character,  however 
lovely,  could  not  have  rivalled  the  charm  that  was 
brought  down  to  a  mellow  old  age  by  a  life  of  self- 
forgetful  love  for  others. 

Mr.  Carter's  love  for  his  young  bride  was  strong  and 
ardent,  and  it  never  waned.  Strangers  who  saw  his 
active  busy  life,  and  heard  his  ready,  outspoken  utter- 
ance, may  have  thought  that  the  quiet,  retiring  woman 


44  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

at  his  side  was  not  his  equal  in  force  of  character ;  but 
he  never  thought  so,  nor  did  those  who  knew  them  best. 
She  had  a  mind  of  her  own,  though  it  was  very  gently 
expressed.  Though  ever  ready  to  yield  in  trifles,  where 
principle  was  involved  she  was  firm  as  a  rock.  To  her 
was  fulfilled  the  promise,  "  The  meek  will  He  guide  in 
judgment."  Mr.  Carter  was  ever  ready  to  acknowl- 
edge his  indebtedness  to  her  wisdom.  All  their  de- 
cisions were  made  together,  and  with  the  most  entire 
unanimity. 

They  were  married  March  18,  1834.  We  may  learn 
how  much  things  have  changed  since  those  days  from 
the  fact  that  the  quiet  little  wedding  had  to  take  place 
at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  in  order  that  the  bridal 
pair  might  reach  Philadelphia  on  their  wedding  trip 
before  night. 

We  may  imagine  that  the  future  prospects  of  the 
young  couple  had  caused  the  bride's  parents  no  little 
anxiety.  Teaching  is  never  a  very  lucrative  business; 
and  though  the  school  had  prospered  wonderfully,  Mr. 
Carter's  strong  sense  of  duty  to  his  father's  family,  and 
his  great  liberality  to  them,  had  prevented  his  saving 
much.  He  was  rich  only  in  faith,  hope,  energy,  and 
ability.  Mr.  Thomson  was  a  man  of  considerable  means, 
but  he  had  ten  children,  and  could  not  be  expected  to 
do  much  for  his  daughter  in  his  lifetime.  Mrs.  Thom- 
son was  a  woman  of  excellent  judgment  and  great  fer- 
tility of  resource,  and  she  suggested  to  her  daughter, 
that,  while  Mr.  Carter  could  never  expect  to  make  a 
fortune  at  teaching,  he  was  a  man  of  good  business  ca- 
pacity, and  that  he  knew  and  loved  books  so  well  that 
he  ought  to  make  a  good  bookseller.  This  was  a  very 
short  time  before  the  marriage.  The  idea  at  once  took 
root,  and  the  very  next  morning  before  school  Mr.  Car- 


BEGINS  THE  BOOK  BUSINESS.  45 

ter  was  looking  about  through  the  business  portions  of 
the  city  for  a  store  suitable  for  his  new  venture.  He 
found  one  on  the  corner  of  Canal  and  Laurens  Streets, 
which  he  took  for  the  1st  of  April.  He  had  saved  just 
six  hundred  dollars,  a  small  sum  with  which  to  launch 
out  simultaneously  in  business  and  matrimony.  He 
heard  of  an  insolvent  bookseller  on  Cortlandt  Street, 
who  had  advertised  for  sale  his  stock  in  trade,  and  he 
went  to  him  and  offered  his  six  hundred  dollars,  which 
was  accepted,  and  he  was  ready  to  start  in  business  as 
soon  as  he  returned  from  his  wedding  trip. 

Mr.  Thomson  gave  his  daughter  a  house  and  furni- 
ture, and  they  set  up  their  simple  housekeeping.  It 
took  great  faith  and  courage  in  the  young  bride,  who 
had  been  used  to  comfort  and  luxury,  to  start  in  life 
with  such  indefinite  prospects;  but  she  felt  her  husband 
to  be  no  ordinary  man,  and  her  confidence  in  him  was 
not  misplaced.  The  young  people  were  resolved  that 
nothing  should  ever  tempt  them  to  run  in  debt  in  the 
smallest  degree,  and  they  resolved  also,  that  if  possible 
they  should  lay  by  something  every  year  ;  and  this  they 
always  succeeded  in  doing,  though  it  required  the  most 
rigid  economy,  especially  as  they  always  extended  a 
very  liberal  helping  hand  to  the  father's  household  in 
Saratoga  County.  Mr.  Carter  had  one  of  the  younger 
brothers  to  help  him  in  the  business,  and  at  different 
times  he  had  four  of  his  brothers  with  him. 

The  very  first  day  his  store  was  opened,  a  woman 
came  in,  and  asked  for  a  Bible.  He  showed  her  his 
stock,  and  she  chose  out  a  handsome  copy,  and  asked 
its  price.  He  was  not  yet  familiar  with  his  price  list, 
and  answered  at  random,  "  Seventy-five  cents."  "  That 
is  wonderfully  cheap,"  said  she,  and  at  once  paid  for  it. 
After  she  had  gone,  Mr.  Carter  looked  up  the  list,  and 


46  LIFE  OF  ROBEET  CARTER. 

found  that  he  had  lost  considerably  on  his  bargain,  but 
it  always  pleased  hiin  to  remember  that  the  Bible  was 
the  first  book  he  ever  sold.  His  first  year  of  business 
yielded  him  a  much  larger  return  than  his  school  had 
done,  and  each  succeeding  year  proved  more  favorable 
than  the  last. 

His  sturdy  independence  and  frugal  habits  were  im- 
portant factors  in  his  success.  One  day  when  his  assist- 
ant was  very  busy  in  the  store,  Mr.  Carter,  as  he  was 
going  home  to  dinner,  picked  up  a  large  package  of  books, 
intending  to  deliver  them  to  a  customer  on  his  way.  As 
he  was  passing  through  the  streets,  he  met  a  young 
bookseller  who  had  started  in  business  about  the  same 
time  as  himself,  and  the  young  man  remarked  sneer- 
ingly,  "  Ah !  I  see  you  are  your  own  porter."  "  Yes," 
said  Mr.  Carter,  "  I  am  not  ashamed  to  do  any  neces- 
sary work." 

Mr.  Carter  soon  removed  into  a  somewhat  larger 
store,  at  the  corner  of  Canal  and  Mercer  Streets,  and 
there  began  to  publish  books.  The  following  account 
of  these  early  business  days  M'as  found  among  his 
papers  :  — 

"In  1836  Mr.  James  Lenox  sent  for  me  and  gave  me 
a  book  which  he  valued  very  much  and  advised  me  to 
publish.  I  did  so,  and  he  took  one  hundred  copies,  and 
distributed  them  mainly  among  the  students  of  Prince- 
ton Seminary.  This  book  was  Symington  on  the 
Atonement.  I  took  a  copy  of  it  to  some  of  the  lead- 
ing booksellers  in  New  York,  and  they  told  me  I  had 
mistaken  my  calling,  —  that  this  was  too  dry  a  book 
for  Americans,  though  it  might  have  suited  the  Cove- 
nanters of  Scotland  two  hundred  years  ago.  Not- 
withstanding this,  the  first  edition  went  off,  and  fifteen 
hundred  more  were  printed  and  sold.      It  was  then 


SYSTEMATIC   BENEVOLENCE.  47 

stereotyped,  and  more  than  six  thousand  have  been 
circulated.^ 

"There  was  one  element  in  my  work  as  a  business 
man  which  was  of  great  importance  to  me.  I  had 
started  with  a  small  capital  of  six  hundred  dollars, 
and  I  had  resolved  to  owe  no  man  anything  save  very 
temporarily.  This  was  of  immense  value  to  me.  When 
a  panic  tried  the  strength  of  many  around  me,  I  had 
nothing  to  trouble  me,  and  generally  the  panic  gave 
me  strength.  I  was  ready  to  act  as  soon  as  it  had 
passed,  and  felt  more  hopeful  than  before." 

He  had  always  followed  the  plan  of  giving  one  tenth 
of  his  income  to  the  Lord's  treasury ;  but  of  this  period 
he  writes :  — 

"  When  I  reached  that  point  where  I  had  a  surplus 
above  what  was  required  for  my  business  purposes,  I 
looked  around  to  see  what  use  I  could  make  of  it.  I 
resolved  to  consecrate  to  the  jMaster's  work  as  much  as 
I  expended  on  my  family.  This  had  a  double  blessing. 
It  caused  economy  at  home,  and  enabled  me  to  use 
cheerfully  for  Christian  w^ork  what  I  had  thus  set  apart. 
A  dear  friend,  who  had  broken  up  housekeeping  on 
account  of  the  death  of  her  husband,  offered  me  her 
carriage  and  pair  of  fine  horses  on  condition  that  I 
would  use  them  in  my  family.  I  told  her  I  could 
not  do  that,  as  it  might  prove  a  snare  for  my  chil- 

*  It  may  be  interesting  to  add  here,  that  in  the  last  year  of  his  life 
Mr.  Carter,  while  visiting  the  Lenox  Library  with  his  grandchildren, 
inquired  if  there  was  a  copy  of  Symington  on  the  Atonement  there. 
The  book  was  found,  and  on  the  fly  leaf  was  the  inscription  with  which 
he  had  presented  it  to  Mr.  Lenox.  It  was  a  gi'eat  gratification  to  him 
to  see  this  book,  which  he  regarded  as  a  sort  of  corner  stone  to  all  his 
publications,  preserved  in  this  permanent  manner  in  his  old  friend's 
library.  Symington  on  the  Atonement  continued  on  his  catalogue  to 
the  end  of  his  life. 


48  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

dren,  whom  I  was  desirous  to  educate  with  simple 
tastes  and  for  useful  ends.  But  I  advised  her  to  sell 
them,  and  use  the  money  in  advancing  the  kingdom 
of  Christ.  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  she  appro- 
priated every  dollar  she  thus  received  for  sacred 
purposes. 

"  By  this  time  I  had  learned  a  precious  lesson,  that 
the  blessing  of  the  Lord  alone  maketh  rich,  and  addeth 
no  sorrow.  Unless  the  Lord  build  the  house,  they  la- 
bor in  vain  that  build  it.  I  was  taught  to  look  up 
every  day  and  every  hour  for  that  blessing.  And  O 
how  sweet  it  is  to  feel  and  to  say,  '  In  Thee  alone  I  put 
my  trust ! ' 

"From  the  commencement  of  my  work  as  a  pub- 
lisher, I  devoted  my  spare  hours  to  reading  books  and 
manuscripts  with  a  view  to  publication.  I  read  thou- 
sands of  volumes,  and  rejected  perhaps  five  for  one  that 
I  adopted.  I  cannot  say  that  this  was  always  wisely 
done,  but  it  was  a  safe  measure.  When  I  had  issued 
two  hundred  books,  I  examined  carefully  what  they 
cost  and  what  they  brought,  and  found  that  there  were 
only  five  on  which  I  had  sunk  money,  and  the  aggre- 
gate of  loss  was  not  more  than  two  hundred  dollars. 
There  were  at  the  same  time  not  more  than  twenty  on 
which  much  profit  was  made.  Many  just  returned  the 
investment,  and  little  more.  It  required  the  strictest 
economy  to  make  business  prosper.  But  there  was  one 
great  advantage.  I  gave  no  notes,  and  owed  nothing, 
so  that  my  mind  was  kept  clear  from  anxiety.  It  was 
a  delightful  work.  During  the  day  I  watched  the  cur- 
rent that  was  moving  before  me,  and  conversed  with 
some  of  the  best  men  and  most  ardent  lovers  of  the 
lost  whom  Christ  died  to  save.  In  my  early  years  I 
owed  much  to  Mrs.  J.  F.  Sheafe,  a  sister  of  Mr.  Lenox. 


CAREFUL   SELECTION   OF   BOOKS.  49 

She  was  fond  of  reading,  had  a  clear  head  and  a  loving 
heart.  She  would  lay  aside  all  other  work,  and  read 
any  new  book  that  I  sent  to  her,  and  give  me  a  distinct 
statement  of  her  impressions  of  its  value.  There  was 
scarcely  any  volume  that  she  indorsed  which  failed  to 
find  a  market.  But  as  the  years  passed  on  and  busi- 
ness increased,  I  thought  I  could  not  tax  her  any  more. 
But  she  often  said  to  me, '  It  was  you  who  gave  me  up, 
not  I  you.' " 


CHAPTER   III. 

ME.  CARTER'S  eldest  child  was  born  March  29, 
1836,  and  was  named  for  his  grandfather,  Samuel 
Thomson.  He  was  a  child  of  great  promise,  docile  and 
lovable  in  an  unusual  degree.  He  had  a  quick  and 
thoughtful  mind,  with  a  ready  memory,  which  stored 
up  a  large  number  of  psalms  and  hymns,  and  other 
bits  of  poetry.  His  parents  afterwards  felt  that  his 
mind  had  been  stimulated  too  much,  but  it  was  such  a 
pleasure  to  teach  the  bright  precocious  little  fellow  that 
it  was  hard  to  resist  the  temptation  to  give  him  the 
information  he  so  eagerly  sought.  He  lived  not  quite 
four  years,  but  there  are  many  still  on  earth  who 
cherish  lovingly  the  memory  of  the  bright  little  boy 
who  went  to  heaven  more  than  fifty  years  ago.  The 
thought  of  him  was  always  a  power  in  the  family,  and 
he  seemed  like  a  real  living  presence  to  the  younger 
brothers  and  sister,  most  of  whom  had  never  seen  him, 
and  the  tradition  of  him  has  been  handed  down  to  the 
next  generation,  who  think  tenderly  of  the  little  Uncle 
Samuel,  who  died  before  their  parents  were  born.  Even 
that  little  child,  though  dead  half  a  century  ago,  still 
speaketh.  Forty-five  years  after  his  death,  his  mother 
told  a  friend  that  she  did  not  think  a  Sunday  had 
passed  since  he  was  taken  from  her  that  she  had  not 
repeated  to  herself  all  the  ten  psalms  and  hymns  which 
he  had  learned  and  been  accustomed  to  recite  to  her  on 
Sundays.     His  father  writes  of  him  *.  — 


DEATH  OF  HIS  FIRST-BORN.  51 

"  When  he  was  three  years  and  six  mouths  old,  his 
mother  and  I  were  driving  with  him  along  a  beautiful 
road  in  the  country.  We  passed  through  a  charming 
valley  where  the  green  hills  bathed  by  the  afternoon 
sun  closed  upon  us.  We  gazed  in  silence.  A  sweet 
voice  uttered  the  words : 

'  As  round  about  Jerusalem 
The  mountains  stand  alway, 
The  Lord  his  folk  doth  compass  so 
From  henceforth  and  for  aye.' 

This  verse  from  a  Psalm  which  he  had  committed  to 
memory  he  applied  to  the  scene  before  us.  His  mother 
asked  him  what  he  was  saying,  and  again  he  repeated 
the  verse,  waving  his  hand  to  the  hills  about  us. 

"  There  was  a  spring  in  the  side  of  a  hill  near  to 
our  country  home'  around  which  there  was  a  rustic 
seat.  The  dear  boy  was  seated  by  me  while  I  was 
reading  one  day,  and,  running  up  to  me,  he  took  me  by 
the  chin  and  said,  '  Papa,  will  this  spring  flow  in  this 
way  when  you  and  I  are  dead  ? '  I  replied, '  Yes.'  '  Our 
spirits  will  be  in  heaven  then,  won't  they  ? ' 

"  I  little  thought  that  in  a  few  months  that  spring 
would  cease  to  flow,  —  some  excavations  having  inter- 
fered with  it,  —  and  that  before  another  year  had  come 
to  us  that  dear  boy  should  be  with  our  Father  in  heaven. 
His  death  after  a  few  months  was  the  first  and  sorest 
trial  of  my  life.  In  my  father's  family  of  eleven  and  ray 
wife's  family  of  ten  there  had  been  no  death  for  forty 
years.  We  had  seen  death  around  us,  but  our  families 
had  remained  unbroken.  At  the  funeral  my  father-in- 
law  rode  in  the  carriage  with  me,  and  the  cofhn  of  my 
dear  boy  lay  before  us.  He  uncovered  the  glass  and 
looked  at  the  sweet  face,  and  with  streaming  eyes  said, 
'  Who  will  be  the  next  ? '  " 


52  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

A  very  touching  little  diary  has  been  preserved,  in 
which  Mr.  Carter  had  noted  down  the  progress  of 
his  little  boy's  illness,  with  such  comments  as  the 
following. 

"  January  28.  Hope  and  despair  vibrating  in  our 
minds.  Extremely  wretched,  —  the  gloomiest  day  we 
have  had." 

"  January  29.  The  poor  dear  boy  sinking  fast,  his 
limbs  wasting  to  a  skeleton,  eyes  as  bright  as  ever,  — 
perfectly  collected.  Prayed  with  him  several  times.  He 
seemed  to  pierce  through  me  with  his  keen  eyes,  as  if 
he  understood  all  that  was  said  and  meant,  though  he 
could  not  speak." 

"  January  30.  The  last  and  severest  day  of  all.  His 
eyes  were  bright  as  ever,  but  his  whole  powers  were 
evidently  giving  way.  Even  then  when  I  prayed  with 
him  he  seemed  intensely  interested,  as  if  he  were 
aware  that  he  was  encountering  the  king  of  terrors. 
About  midnight  he  put  out  his  lips  to  kiss  papa  and 
mamma,  and  seemed  to  bid  us  a  last  farewell.  At  three 
o'clock  precisely  on  Friday  morning,  the  31st  of  Janu- 
ary, he  breathed  his  last,  without  a  struggle  or  a  groan. 
His  spirit  gently  departed  to  his  Father  and  his  God. 
May  his  departure  be  blessed  to  his  mourning  friends ! 
If  these  things  were  done  in  the  green  tree,  what  shall 
be  done  in  the  dry  ?  O  that  we  and  all  dear  to  us  may 
be  enabled  to  say,  We  shall  go  to  him,  but  he  will  not 
return  to  us  !  Go  to  him  !  Where  and  what  is  he  ?  All 
glorious  !  all  light !  all  love  !  His  active  spirit  bathes 
in  the  fountain  of  bliss.  'Alleluia!'  let  us  hear  him 
exultingly  exclaim, '  Alleluia !  Glory  to  the  Lamb,  who 
has  washed  me  in  his  blood  and  presented  me  pure 
and  spotless  before  his  Father's  throne ! ' " 

He  writes  again :  — 


DEATH  OF  HIS  FIRST-BORN.  53 

"  The  death  of  this  loved  boy  taught  us  many  useful 
lessons.  I  thought  of  a  class  of  six  children  in  my 
Sabbath  school,  and  sent  them  a  letter  urging  them  to 
come  to  Christ,  accompanied  with  a  little  book  entitled 
'  My  Saviour.'  Four  of  the  six  became  members  of  the 
church  the  next  communion.  One  dear  young  lady 
died  some  years  later  with  this  book  lying  on  her 
breast,  and  her  thin,  transparent  hands  pointing  to  the 
page  which  she  had  been  reading  when  she  breathed  her 
last.  A  younger  brother  of  my  own,  who  had  slept  with 
the  dear  boy  in  his  bosom  for  some  years,  was  suddenly 
awakened  to  a  sense  of  his  lost  condition.  He  was  a 
bright  scholar,  and  had  become  conscious  of  it,  and  proud 
of  his  acquirements,  and  sometimes  questioned  the  wis- 
dom of  God's  dealings  with  men.  When  this  stroke  came 
upon  us,  he  was  in  an  agony.  The  dearest  object  of  his 
love  lay  dead.  He  had  witnessed  the  simple  piety  of 
the  child  of  less  than  four  years  of  age,  and  exclaimed, 
'Where  would  I  have  been  had  I  been  taken  instead  of 
him  ?  I  had  the  audacity  to  question  the  goodness  of  God, 
and  now  I  am  lost.'  His  struggles  were  fearful,  but  God 
had  mercy  on  him,  and  made  him  a  burning  and  shining 
light  in  this  world  of  darkness.  An  older  brother,  who 
had  professed  Christ  some  years  before  but  had  been 
turned  about  and  chilled,  became  a  new  man,  and  gave 
bright  testimony  to  his  faith  in  the  dear  Eedeemer.  In 
the  Sabbath  school  whole  classes  were  brought  to  a  de- 
cision which  affected  all  their  future  lives.  We  could 
only  say,  '  See  what  God  hath  wrought.'  " 

Among  the  earliest  publications  of  Mr.  Carter  were 
the  writings  of  Miss  Catharine  Sinclair.  She  was  the 
daughter  of  Sir  John  Sinclair,  a  leading  British  philan- 
thropist and  voluminous  writer  nearly  a  century  ago. 
He  closed  a  long  and  honored  life  in  1835,  in  his  eighty- 


54  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

second  year.  He  had  a  numerous  family,  several  of 
whom  attained  distinction.  They  were  remarkable  for 
their  great  stature,  and  he  used  to  refer  to  his  six 
daughters  as  "  my  thirty-six  feet  of  daughters."  Mr. 
Carter  met  Miss  Catharine  Sinclair  in  1841,  and  said 
he  was  very  glad  when  she  sat  down  to  talk  to  him, 
for  he  did  not  like  to  look  up  to  a  woman  who  towered 
so  far  above  him.  The  following  letter  from  her  is 
interesting  for  its  pictures  of  a  time  so  long  passed,  and 
shows  the  cordial  relations  which  subsisted  from  the 
very  first  between  this  publisher  and  his  authors. 

"  Your  very  acceptable  and  interesting  letter  reached  me 
on  the  12th,  aud  I  have  to  thank  you  also  for  a  packet  of 
books,  among  which  '  Hill  and  Valley '  appeared  as  an  old 
friend  with  a  new  face.  The  printing  is  so  correct  and  the 
binding  so  handsome  that  our  publishers  here  must  really 
look  to  themselves  to  keep  pace  with  you.  I  am  now 
bringing  out  a  third  thousand  of  *  Hill  and  Valley,'  which 
has  met  with  exactly  a  similar  reception  to  that  you  so 
obligingly  inform  me  of  at  New  York,  being  more  approved 
of,  but  less  sold,  than  the  works  of  fiction,  which  are  always 
more  popular^  so  that  authors  are  not  encouraged  to  speak 
the  truth. 

"  '  Holiday  House '  is  already  in  a  second  edition,  and  I 
was  greatly  annoyed  to  perceive  that  ^Ir.  W.  had  not  suffi- 
ciently attended  to  my  directions  about  forwarding  the  sheets 
to  you,  which  I  had  trusted  entirely  to  his  doing,  because  as 
long  as  I  hold  a  pen  it  will  be  a  gratification  to  me  that  you 
should  continue  the  office  you  so  kindly  assumed  at  first  of 
sponsor  for  my  works  at  Xew  York.  Mr.  W.  is  now  in 
London.  I  know  that  he  received  your  letter  and  remit- 
tance in  due  course,  but  several  of  the  works  you  ordered 
lately  are  out  of  print,  as  indeed  many  of  our  best  standard 
authors  are  now,  to  make  way  for  the  flood  of  modern  litera- 
ture crowding  into  the  press  every  day. 


MISS  CATHARINE   SINCLAIR.  55 

"  In  divinity  nothing  goes  off  so  rapidly  as  controversy, 
such  as  the  Oxford  Tracts,  filled  with  disputes  whether  the 
clergy  should  turn  to  the  south  or  to  the  north  in  adminis- 
tering the  sacrament,  and  whether  they  should  pray  from  a 
low  stool  or  a  reading-desk,  while  meanwhile  the  weightier 
matters  of  the  law  are  neglected;  but  I  trust  the  Bible  will 
assert  its  superiority  over  the  rubric,  and  St.  Paul  be  always 
authority.  In  fiction  there  has  been  a  most  extraordinary 
sale  for  Lady  Lytton  Eulwer's  new  work,  '  Cheveley,'  two 
editions  of  which  were  sold  in  London  before  a  single  copy 
has  been  spared  to  us  at  a  distance  ;  therefore,  I  have  only 
seen  extracts  sufficient  to  prove  that  it  is  flavored  to  the 
reigning  taste  with  gossip  and  scandal,  our  present  ministry 
and  her  Majesty  the  Queen  being  introduced  as  leading  char- 
acters, and  made  to  take  a  conspicuous  share  in  the  story 
and  in  the  dialogues.  It  is  quite  a  recent  innovation,  that  of 
taking  living  persons  and  using  them  as  puppets  to  play  the 
game  of  life  with,  but  it  occasions  great  astonishment  that 
the  Queen  herself  has  been  so  freely  handled.  Sir  Lytton 
Bulwer  and  his  lady  used  to  write  fictions  in  concert,  but 
they  have  now  quarrelled  and  have  separated ;  therefore  she 
adopts  the  Tory  side  of  politics  in  opposition  to  him,  and 
wishes  to  show  that  the  wit  and  talent  of  their  former  works 
was  all  her  own,  which  has  sharpened  her  pen  considerably. 

"  I  should  like  much  to  see  the  New  York  Eeview  which 
you  mention ;  and  although  it  is  an  additional  pleasure  to 
see  any  of  your  friends  who  are  obliging  enough  to  bring 
me  an  introduction  from  you,  yet  the  expense  of  any  pack- 
age or  letter  is  no  object  to  me,  and  I  hope  may  never 
stand  in  the  way  of  my  hearing  from  you  or  receiving  any 
such  notices  of  my  work  as  might  be  not  only  interesting, 
but  extremely  useful  as  containing  suggestions, 

"  I  propose  this  summer  to  spend  some  months  in  travel- 
ling over  the  most  interesting  parts  of  Scotland.  Little  has 
been  written  of  a  lighter  kind  on  this  romantic  land,  and  in 
all  probability  I  may  be  tempted  to  continue  my  •  Hill  and 


56  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Valley'  amongst  our  native  glens,  where  past  and  present 
times  may  furnish  an  ample  field  of  interest.  But  owing 
to  the  advanced  age  and  uncertain  health  of  ray  mother, 
such  plans  must  be  formed  with  still  greater  uncertainty 
than  attaches  to  all  hopes  and  wishes  we  indulge  in  this 
world,  and  which  can  only  be  formed  with  the  pleasing  con- 
sciousness that  they  depend  upon  the  will  of  One  whom  it  is 
always  our  delight  to  trace  in  all  we  are  enabled  to  do,  and 
even  in  much  we  are  hindered  from  doing. 

"  I  have  often  discussed  with  my  brothers  the  pleasure  it 
would  give  us  at  some  future  time  to  visit  America,  and  we 
do  hope  at  some  distant  period  to  visit  our  friends  in  New 
York,  as  it  is  scarcely  a  greater  undertaking  now  than  a  trip 
to  London  formerly. 

"  When  my  father  corresponded  with  your  illustrious 
"Washington,  he  intended  at  one  time  to  emigrate  with  his 
family,  and  had  a  strong  partiality  for  that  country,  which 
we  have  all  inherited,  and  all  we  read  of  your  magnificent 
scenery  and  noble  institutions  has  served  to  confirm  our 
anticipation  of  pleasure  in  a  country  of  such  increasing 
prosperity.  I  therefore  hope  in  years  to  come  that  we 
may  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you,  and  claiming  old 
acquaintance." 

In  1841  Mr.  Carter  revisited  his  old  home  in  Scotland, 
taking  with  him  his  wife  and  infant  son,  and  his  wife's 
sister.  An  amusing  incident  occurred  the  very  day 
they  landed.  On  the  cars  between  Liverpool  and  Lon- 
don two  men  sat  opposite  them  who  were  discussing 
America,  and  one  of  them  asserted  that  all  Americans 
were  black.  This  aroused  the  combativeness  of  Miss 
Thomson,  who  was  a  thorough-going  American,  and 
taking  her  little  nephew  from  the  nurse's  arms  she  ex- 
tended the  fair-skinned  infant  towards  the  stranger, 
saying,  "  Is  this  child  black  ? "  "  That  child  never  saw 
America."     "  He  has  not  been  in  England  twenty-four 


VISIT  TO  SCOTLAND.  57 

hours."     The  discomfited  stranger  held  his  peace  after 
that  on  a  subject  of  which  he  knew  so  little. 

A  warm  welcome  awaited  the  travellers  at  the  old 
home  in  Earlston.  Some  of  the  simple-hearted  villagers 
had  formed  great  ideas  of  the  prosperity  of  their  fellow 
townsman.  His  wife  had  some  gilt  buttons  on  one  of 
her  gowns,  and  it  was  whispered  about  that  Mrs.  Carter 
was  so  rich  that  she  never  wore  anything  but  gold 
buttons. 

In  an  evil  hour,  many  years  before,  Mr.  Carter's 
father  had  become  security  for  a  friend  who  was  a  flour- 
dealer  in  Earlston.  This  man,  though  honest,  became 
bankrupt,  and  old  Mr.  Carter  was  bound  to  pay  the 
money.  It  was  a  heavy  load  for  him  to  bear,  and  his 
son  determined  to  pay  it  off  while  on  this  visit  to  his 
old  home.  He  often  said  he  had  never  done  anything 
that  gave  him  more  pleasure.  The  chief  creditor  said, 
when  the  money  was  paid  him,  "  This  will  support  me 
for  two  years."  When  Mr.  Carter  gave  his  father  the 
receipts,  he  exclaimed  joyfully,  "  I  can  now  depart  in 
peace,  for  I  owe  no  man  anything." 

Suretyship  has  been  a  great  stumbling-block  to  many 
Scotchmen,  who  are  led  into  it  by  their  strong  sense  of 
the  obligations  of  friendship.  Mr.  Carter  found  his 
Cousin  Thomas,  to  whom  he  owed  so  much  of  his  early 
education,  staggering  under  a  similar  burden.  His 
father,  too,  had  become  security  for  a  friend,  and  in- 
curred the  obligation  of  the  debt.  The  old  gentleman 
had  just  died,  and  his  son  was  overwhelmed  with  a 
debt  which  he  had  no  means  of  paying,  and  his  cred- 
itor was  pressing  him  sorely.  Mr.  Carter  felt  that  he 
owed  this  cousin  what  money  could  never  pay,  and 
gladly  told  him  that  he  would  make  the  payment  for 
him.     Mr.  Thomas  Carter  was  overcome  with  gratitude, 


58  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

and  thanked  his  cousin  with  many  tears.  He  told  him 
that  he  had  been  almost  on  the  verge  of  insanity ;  that 
his  case  had  seemed  perfectly  hopeless,  and  his  sense  of 
honor  was  so  keen  that  his  position  was  indeed  galling. 
One  night  he  had  retired  to  his  room,  wound  his  watch 
and  laid  it  on  his  dressing  table,  and  then,  sitting  down, 
began  to  think  over  his  trouble.  All  before  him  seemed 
dark,  and  he  said  to  himself, "  It  is  just  as  impossible 
for  me  to  extricate  myself  from  these  difficulties  as  it 
would  be  for  that  watch  to  stop  itself  and  then  go  on 
of  its  own  accord."  At  that  instant  his  watch,  which 
had  been  ticking  loudly,  suddenly  stopped.  He  gazed 
on  it  in  amazement,  and  saw  that  the  second  hand  stood 
still.  He  waited  what  seemed  to  him  several  minutes, 
and  then,  without  his  having  touched  it,  the  watch  went 
on  again.  He  felt  that  God  had  given  him  a  sign  that 
relief  would  come  for  him,  and  in  his  cousin's  generous 
act  he  recognized  the  finger  of  God. 

This  cousin,  Thomas  Carter,  was  a  man  of  high  char- 
acter, fine  abilities,  and  thorough  scholarship,  but  was 
hampered  through  life  by  extreme  timidity.  When  he 
was  teaching  his  cousin  Eobert,  he  was  a  student  of 
divinity  in  the  Secession  Church.  He  completed  his 
course,  but  at  that  time  the  rules  of  his  church  were 
very  strict  against  reading  sermons  in  the  pulpit.  He 
might  have  preached  if  he  could  have  had  his  manu- 
script before  him,  but  his  diffidence  would  not  permit 
him  to  get  through  the  service  without  such  anchorage. 
He  tried  to  preach  without  notes,  but  to  his  great  mor- 
tification failed.  He  was  obliged  to  give  up  all  idea  of 
the  ministry,  and  spent  his  life  as  a  parish  schoolmaster. 
He  doubtless  felt  his  life  was  a  failure.  Perhaps  the 
angels  saw  in  it  a  higher  success  than  they  could  find 
in  the  lives  of  some  men  who  with  less  talent  and 


D'AUBIGNfe'S   HISTORY   OF  THE   REFORMATION.     59 

more  assurance  climbed  to  a  prominent  position  in  the 
world. 

The  cousins  were  always  very  happy  to  meet  on  Mr. 
Robert  Carter's  repeated  visits  to  Scotland.  It  would 
be  hard  to  say  which  felt  the  most  grateful  to  the  other. 
One  ministered  to  the  intellectual  life  of  his  boy  cousin, 
the  other  smoothed  the  declining  years  of  him  who  had 
befriended  him  in  youth. 

Mr.  Carter  writes  of  this  trip  to  Europe  and  its 
results : — 

"  In  Edinburgh  and  London  I  formed  valuable  friend- 
ships, and  procured  books  which  were  of  great  service 
to  me.  On  my  way  home  I  read  Merle  d'Aubign^'s 
History  of  the  Reformation,  in  three  volumes.  I  was  so 
delighted  with  it  that  I  said  to  my  wife,  '  This  will  pay 
for  our  trip  to  Europe.'  Immediately  upon  landing  I  put 
it  into  the  hands  of  the  stereotyper,  and  the  work  cre- 
ated great  interest.  After  some  time  a  rival  edition  in 
small  print,  double  columns,  was  issued  in  Philadelphia. 
I  then  printed  an  edition  in  three  volumes,  half  bound 
in  cloth,  for  one  dollar.  For  many  months  the  presses 
were  going  night  and  day,  and  so  close  was  the  race 
that  on  thirty  thousand  sets  the  net  gain  was  only  two 
cents  for  the  three  volumes.  But  it  was  delightful 
work,  and  though  there  was  no  gain  from  the  book  it- 
self, yet  I  was  brought  favorably  before  the  public,  and 
my  sales  of  other  books  were  greatly  increased.  .  I  pub- 
lished at  this  time  Chalmers's  Lectures  on  Romans,  Ser- 
mons, Essays,  etc.  The  stereotype  plates  of  Home's 
Introduction  were  sold  at  a  trade  sale.  I  bought  them 
for  $3,300.  This  was  my  greatest  undertaking  at  that 
time.  The  day  after  the  sale  I  met  Mr.  John  Campbell, 
the  paper  dealer,  and  he  asked  me  how  I  was  going  to 
pay  for  the  plates  of  Home.     I  told  him  I  must  borrow 


60  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

the  money.  He  said,  '  I  will  lend  it  to  you  and  leave 
you  to  pay  it  at  your  convenience.'  I  a.sked  him  what 
security  he  required,  and  he  answered,  '  None  at  all, 
not  even  a  note.'  He  knew  that  I  did  not  give  note?, 
but  paid  cash  for  my  purchases.^  I  issued  this  impor- 
tant work  in  cloth,  half  bound,  for  83.50.  It  was  said 
that  the  scholar's  millennium  had  now  come,  when  the 
work  which  had  sold  for  $12  was  reduced  to  S3. 50." 

One  of  the  peculiarities  of  Mr.  Carter's  business  life 
was  this  of  giving  no  notes.  Neither  would  he  go 
security  for  any  one.  When  he  took  his  brothers  into 
partnership  with  him,  he  and  they  signed  a  %vritten 
paper  pledging  themselves  never  to  go  security.  This 
made  it  easy  for  them  to  refuse  all  requests  of  that 
kind.  They  could  respond  that  they  were  pledged  never 
to  enter  into  any  such  arrangement.  Another  point 
upon  which  he  was  very  decided  was  that  he  would 
never  engage  in  a  lawsuit.  He  preferred  to  suffer 
wrong  rather  than  violate  his  peace  loving  principles. 
Again  and  again  he  was  placed  where  other  men 
would  have  gone  to  law,  but  he  held  to  his  principle, 
and  was  never  a  loser  by  it  in  the  end,  and  sometimes 
he  was  a  great  gainer. 

But  the  most  marked  feature  of  Mr.  Carter's  busi- 
ness life  was  his  earnest  resolve  that  his  business 
should  be  a  direct  means  of  serving  God  and  doing 
good  to  his  fellow  men.  He  did  not  pursue  it  merely 
as  a  means  of  gaining  a  fortune,  or  even  a  livelihood, 
and  it  has  been  truthfully  said  of  him,  "  No  book  ever 
issued  from  his  press  that  did  not  contain  some  seed  of 
divine  truth."     He  published 

"  Xo  line  which,  dying,  he  could  wi.sh  to  blot." 

1  In  less  than  six  months  this  money  was  returned,  and  no  small 

proportion  of  it  from  the  earnings  of  the  book  itself. 


A  CHRISTIAN  PUBLISHER.  61 

In  a  tribute  paid  to  the  memory  of  Mr.  Carter  by- 
Mr,  A.  D.  F.  Randolph,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Board  of 
Managers  of  the  American  Bible  Society,  January  2, 
1890,  occur  the  following  words ;  — 

"  It  is  possible  that  the  departure  of  our  friend  touches 
me  more  closely  than  any  one  else  here.  For  more  than 
fifty  years  I  knew  him.  I  see  him  now  as  when  I  saw  him 
first ;  I  see  him  now  as  when  I  met  him  last.  Time  with  its 
many  changes  wrought  no  change  in  his  affection  for  me, 
brought  no  loss  in  mine  for  him.  And  yet  for  nearly  two- 
score  years  our  business  life  ran  along  somewhat  parallel 
lines,  —  rival  lines  as  some  might  say,  —  but  without  a  sin- 
gle controversy  or  contention  of  any  kind. 

"...  Here,  if  anywhere,  I  may  emphasize  his  eminent 
service  to  the  church  and  the  world  as  a  Christian  publisher. 
I  recall  the  first  book  that  bore  his  honored  imprint.  It 
was  a  treatise  on  the  doctrine  of  the  atonement  of  Christ. 
Cradled  in  a  theology  as  rugged  as  the  hills  under  whose 
shadows  he  was  born,  our  friend  loved  the  meat  of  strong 
doctrine,  and  this  first  publication,  on  a  central  and  funda- 
mental doctrine  of  the  Gospel,  was  tho  keystone  of  the 
broad  arch  which  he  subsequently  built.  There  was  not  a 
stone  in  it  that  was  not  a  stone  of  truth  ;  yet  all  were  not 
purely  theological  or  controversial,  while  over  them  was 
trailed  many  a  vine  of  parable  and  story  bearing  the  blos- 
som and  the  fruit  of  Scripture  truth.  And  so  if  his  own 
theology  was  as  rugged  as  his  native  hills,  it  was  neither 
cold  nor  sterile.  To  it  there  ever  came,  as  there  always 
comes  to  them,  the  gentle  rains  of  the  spring,  the  fresh  and 
beautiful  verdure,  the  quickening  suns  of  summer,  and  the 
full  bloom  of  the  heather. 

"  I  know  that  it  has  been  said  of  him  in  this  connection, 
that  he  was  narrow.  But  he  only  desired,  as  has  been  said 
by  another,  to  be  as  broad  and  as  narrow  as  the  Book  of 


62  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

God.  I  doubt  if,  in  all  the  annals  of  that  trade  of  which  I 
am  so  proud,  there  can  be  found  an  example  of  loftier  devo- 
tion to  a  high  calling,  with  such  singleness  of  purpose,  and 
80  deep  a  sense  of  personal  responsibility,  as  is  shown  in  his 
history.  He  was  indeed  conspicuous  fur  his  *  plain  living  and 
high  thinking,'  and  he  walked  '  as  seeing  Him  who  is  in- 
visible.' So  wherever  he  sent  his  printed  page  he  became 
a  teacher  of  other  teachers,  a  comforter  of  sorrowing  hearts, 
a  minister  of  strength  to  enfeebled  or  doubting  souls,  a  wise 
educator  of  little  children,  a  promoter  of  love  and  faith  in 
them  that  believe,  an  instructor  in  truth  and  righteousness 
to  them  that  believed  not. 

"  Surely  there  can  be  no  higher  mission  than  this  ;  and 
this  was  the  mission  of  our  honored  friend." 

In  this  connection  Mr.  Peter  Carter  writes  of  his 
brother  :  — 

"  From  the  day  he  opened  his  store,  he  never  had  a  ques- 
tion of  his  ultimate  success,  and  no  doubt  this  sanguine 
spirit  helped  him  much  in  bringing  about  the  success  that 
attended  his  work. 

"  Though  a  ruling  elder  in  the  Presbyterian  Church,  his 
interest  and  affection  were  not  confined  to  his  own  denomina- 
tion. His  heart  was  large  enough  to  take  in  the  whole 
Evangelical  Church  in  all  its  branches. 

"  One  day  a  wealthy  friend  called  on  him  with  a  book 
which  he  wanted  him  to  publish,  and  of  which  he  said  he 
would  take  one  hundred  copies.  It  was  entitled,  '  The 
Divine  Right  of  Presbyterian  Church  Government.' 

"  Mr.  Carter  looked  at  it  a  moment,  and  said,  '  As  I  read 
the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  I  think  the  Presbyterian  form  is  a 
little  the  nearest  to  that  inspired  record,  but  I  don't  believe 
that  any  one  form  has  a  divine  right,'  and  he  would  not 
publish  the  book. 

"  On  another  occasion  a  gentleman  brought  him  a  little 
volume  to  publish  that  had  had  a  large  sale  in  a  Western 


D'AUBIGNfi  ON  THE  MISSISSIPPI.  63 

city,  on  *  The  Difficulties  of  Arrninian  Methodism.'  Mr. 
Carter  said,  *  No,  I  cannot  publish  it.  Pulling  down  may  be 
necessary  ;  but  I  did  not  go  into  business  to  do  that,  but  to 
build  tip  Christ's  Church  as  far  as  in  my  power.'  " 

In  connection  with  the  publication  of  the  History  of 
the  Reformation,  Mr.  Carter  used  often  to  relate  the  fol- 
lowing incident.  He  had  gone  West  to  attend  a  meet- 
ing of  the  General  Assembly,  and  on  his  voyage  down  the 
Mississippi  the  steamboat  struck  on  a  snag,  and  was  so 
badly  injured  that  they  had  to  wait  several  days  at  a 
little  river -side  town  for  repairs.  This  with  the  time 
usually  occupied  by  the  passage  made  the  voyage  quite 
a  long  one,  and  the  passengers  became  very  well  ac- 
quainted, many  of  them  also  being  delegates  to  the 
Assembly.  He  had  a  copy  of  the  History  with  him, 
and  it  was  proposed  that  it  should  be  read  aloud,  and 
accordingly  there  was  a  large  circle  of  interested  listen- 
ers. Among  the  rest  was  a  lady  of  great  refinement, 
dressed  in  deep  mourning,  who  seemed  to  enjoy  the 
book  as  much  as  any  one.  One  day  during  their  deten- 
tion a  large  party  went  on  shore  for  a  walk,  and  this 
lady  fell  into  conversation  with  Mr.  Carter,  and  told 
him  that  she  was  a  Eomanist.  She  belonged  to  a 
wealthy  and  influential  family  in  Pennsylvania,  but 
her  home  was  a  very  worldly  one,  and  she  was  brought 
up  with  little  thought  or  care  for  religion.  When  a 
young  girl  she  was  sent  to  a  convent  school.  She  said 
she  had  never  seen  vital  piety  till  she  saw  it  in  those 
nuns,  and  she  was  so  impressed  with  their  holy,  self- 
denying  lives  that  she  had  made  their  religion  hers. 
She  seemed  a  lovely  Christian  woman,  looking  only  to 
Christ  as  her  Lord  and  Saviour.  Mr.  Carter  said,  "  I 
am  surprised  that  you  should  come  daily  to  listen  to 


64  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

D'Aubignd.  Surely  you  hear  much  that  is  repugnant 
to  your  feelings."  "  I  have  been  greatly  interested," 
said  she ;  "  the  Church  had  fallen  into  a  very  low  and 
corrupt  state,  and  needed  purification.  The  Refor- 
mation was  a  great  blessing  to  it,  and  it  has  felt  the 
benefit  ever  since." 

On  another  Western  journey  Mr.  Carter  met  with  a 
lady,  who  rather  attached  herself  to  the  ladies  of  his 
party,  sitting  with  them  on  deck,  and  joining  in  con- 
versation. One  evening  she  complained  of  the  cold, 
and  requested  Mr.  Carter  to  ask  her  husband  to  get  her  a 
shawl.  "  I  did  not  know  your  husband  was  with  you." 
She  described  his  appearance,  and  said  he  was  in  the 
saloon.  Mr.  Carter  found  him  gambling  with  some 
other  men,  and  told  him  that  his  wife  wanted  a  shawl. 
"  I  can't  be  bothered  to  get  it  now.  She  won't  suffer." 
The  man  never  came  near  his  young  wife  till  they  were 
about  to  disembark  and  go  with  the  rest  of  the  passen- 
gers to  a  hotel  for  the  night.  The  next  afternoon  the 
lady  was  sitting  with  Mr.  Carter's  party  in  the  hotel 
parlor  when  he  came  to  summon  them  to  go  to  the 
train.  When  they  arose,  she  rose  too  as  if  to  accom- 
pany them.  He  said  to  her,  "  I  met  your  husband  just 
now,  Madam,  and  he  said  you  were  not  going."  She 
turned  deadly  pale,  and  sat  down  again,  but  just  as  the 
train  was  starting  the  young  couple  came  hurriedly 
along,  and  got  on  the  next  car.  Something  in  their 
appearance  struck  Mr.  Carter,  and  he  went  in  to  look 
for  them  after  travelling  some  miles,  but  they  were 
gone.  He  asked  the  conductor  if  he  knew  what  had 
become  of  them,  and  was  told  that  they  had  no  money, 
and  he  had  put  them  off  the  car.  Some  years  after- 
wards Mr.  Carter  was  relating  this  incident  on  an 
ocean  steamer,  when  a  lady,  greatly  interested,  inquired 


DEATH  OF  HIS  FATHER.  65 

the  date  and  place.  He  told  her,  and  she  said  to  him  : 
"  I  can  tell  you  what  became  of  those  young  people.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  respectable  parents  in  Michigan, 
but  married  this  young  man,  who  was  almost  a  stranger, 
against  the  wishes  of  her  friends.  They  had  been  mar- 
ried but  a  few  days  when  you  saw  them.  He  proved 
to  be  a  professional  gambler,  and  on  that  steamer  and 
in  that  hotel  lost  every  cent  of  his  money  and  hers. 
When  he  was  put  off  the  train  in  the  darkness  that 
night,  he  drew  out  a  revolver  and  shot  his  brains  out, 
and  in  the  morning  his  bride  was  found  sitting  alone 
on  the  prairie,  with  her  husband's  head  in  her  lap. 
The  poor  young  creature  was  taken  back  to  her  friends 
in  Michigan." 

Mr.  Carter's  father  died,  May  2,  1844,  twelve  years 
after  coming  to  America.  His  sturdy  Scotch  character 
had  won  for  him  a  place  in  the  farming  community  in 
which  he  lived,  in  Saratoga  County,  Kew  York.  He 
was  an  active  member  of  church  and  Sunday  school,  an 
ardent  advocate  of  total  abstinence  and  antislavery,  for 
which  causes  he  was  ever  ready  to  speak  in  public  and 
private,  —  ready  to  run  risks  too,  for  in  the  days  of  the 
Fugitive  Slave  Law  he  was  a  conductor  on  the  Under- 
ground Eailway.  In  this  connection,  his  son  Walter 
relates  the  following  incident :  — 

"  One  stormy  winter  morning,  soon  after  the  passing  of  the 
Fugitive  Slave  Law,  enacting  severe  penalties  for  harboring  a 
fugitive  slave,  as  we  knelt  at  worship  in  the  old  farm-house, 
a  soft  knock  was  heard  at  the  door.  It  was  gently  opened, 
while  the  solemn  prayer  went  on.  As  we  rose  from  our 
knees,  we  saw  a  large  negro,  shabbily  dressed  and  covered 
with  snow,  standing  by  the  door.  He  looked  at  father,  as  if 
asking  protection,  and  was  welcomed  to  the  fire.  He  took 
his  seat  at  the  table,  and  ate  like  one  famished.     After  a 

5 


66  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

brief  whispered  conversation,  father  told  me  to  harness  the 
fast  mare  to  the  sleigh,  and  both  started  northward.  The  rest 
of  the  family  went  to  church,  and  late  at  uight  the  wearied 
horse  and  the  tired  driver  returned.  As  the  family  gathered 
around  him,  he  explained  that  nothing  but  a  case  of  neces- 
sity and  mercy  would  have  taken  him  on  such  a  journey  on 
the  Sabbath  day ;  but  the  poor  runaway  slave  had  for  two 
days  hardly  tasted  food,  sleeping  in  barns,  and  fearing  to  tell 
his  story  to  some  enemy,  who  might  betray  him  to  his  mas- 
ter. He  was  overjoyed  to  find  a  friend  ready  and  willing 
to  help,  and  our  sleigh  took  him  to  the  house  of  another 
friend,  who  took  him  farther  on  his  journey.  In  conclu- 
sion, my  father  said,  '  This  government  has  a  fearful  record 
to  meet  some  day  from  its  treatment  of  the  Indian  and 
the  negro,  and  if  ever  you  can  do  a  kind  service  to  the  red 
man  or  the  black  man,  be  sure  to  do  it,  lest  you  share  in 
the  condemnation  and  the  punishment.' " 

Mr.  Thomas  Carter's  total  abstinence  teachings  bore 
fruit  in  his  own  family.  He  had  eleven  children  and 
over  fifty  grandchildren,  and  as  many  great-grandchil- 
dren, and  it  is  believed  that  not  one  of  the  number  ever 
used  intoxicating  drink. 

He  was  deeply  interested  in  his  son's  publications, 
and  read  them  carefully  and  with  delight.  He  felt  the 
deep  responsibility  of  a  religious  publisher.  On  one 
occasion  he  came  to  New  York  for  his  annual  visit  just 
after  his  son  had  published  "  Lights  and  Shadows  of 
Scottish  Life,"  by  Prof.  John  Wilson,  who  wrote  under 
the  nom  de  plume  of  Christopher  North.  The  old  gen- 
tleman said  to  his  son,  "  I  am  sorry  to  hear  you  ve  been 
publishing  a  novel,"  accenting  in  his  Scottish  dialect 
the  last  syllable.  Mr.  Carter  in  vain  tried  to  defend 
himself  by  speaking  of  the  purity  and  elegant  style  of 
what  was  indeed  a  classic  work ;  but  his  father  would 


INTEREST  IN  FOREIGN  MISSIONS.  67 

not  be  mollified,  insisting  that  novels  were  very  dan- 
gerous reading. 

That  night,  after  tea,  Mr.  Carter  took  a  book,  saying, 
"  Father,  here  is  something  I  want  to  read  to  you,"  and 
read  aloud  the  story  of  "  The  Elder's  Deathbed."  The 
old  man  listened,  with  tears  rolling  down  his  cheeks. 

"  Eh,  Eobert,  that 's  a  graund  buik.  Where  did  ye 
get  it  ? " 

Mr.  Carter  told  him  that  he  had  been  reading  from 
the  novel  that  had  been  so  severely  denounced  in  the 
morning. 

"  I  didna  ken  it  was  such  a  buik  as  yon.  Ye  maun 
gie  me  some  for  the  neebors  at  hame." 

There  was  no  work  which   so  thoroughly  enlisted 
Mr.  Carter's  interest  through  life  as  that  of  Foreign 
Missions.     Eev.  Dr.  Ellenwood,  Secretary  of  the  Pres- . 
by terian  Board,  thus  writes  of  him  after  his  death :  — 

"  Upon  the  assumption  of  the  work  of  foreign  missions  by 
the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  in  1837, 
and  its  establishment  in  New  York,  Mr.  Carter  took  a  deep 
interest  in  its  success.  Six  years  later,  at  the  age  of  thirty- 
six,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Board,  and  in  1847  a 
member  of  its  executive  committee. 

"Through  all  his  long  connection  with  the  Board,  Mr. 
Carter  was  earnestly  seconded  in  his  missionary  spirit,  in 
his  prayers  and  efforts,  by  his  wife,  whose  death  preceded 
his  only  by  two  and  a  half  years.  When  the  '  Missionary 
Chronicle,'  the  predecessor  of  the  '  Foreign  Missionary,'  was 
first  issued  in  New  York,  it  was  published  by  Mr.  Carter  at 
the  slightest  possible  expense  to  the  Board.  It  was  printed 
under  his  direction,  his  wife  making  the  paste  with  which 
the  covers  were  put  on,  and  the  city  distribution  was  per- 
formed by  a  younger  brother,  who  bore  them  from  house  to 
house.     It  is  easy  to  see  from  this  simple  incident  that  Mr. 


68  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Carter's  relation  to  the  work  of  foreign  missions  was  no  per- 
functory affair,  but  that  his  labor  for  this  great  cause  was 
performed  so  lovingly  that  the  magnetism  of  his  spirit 
moulded  his  whole  household.  The  cause  was  taken  home 
to  the  fireside,  and  the  family  altar,  and  the  closet.  One 
of  the  last  acts  of  his  life  was  the  making  of  arrangements 
for  the  annual  gift  for  foreign  missions. 

"  Though  he  continued  in  the  Board  of  Foreign  Missions 
to  the  age  of  eighty-two,  yet  the  spirit  which  favored  pro- 
gress on  the  one  hand  and  conciliation  and  forbearance  on 
the  other  characterized  his  whole  course.  As  a  rule,  he 
voted  for  every  wise  measure  of  progress.  There  was  a 
bright  and  hopeful  energy  in  his  mind,  even  to  fourscore 
years.  He  was  not  bound  to  the  past.  He  expected  pro- 
gress as  he  had  earnestly  prayed  for  it.  He  realized  that 
many  of  the  old  moulds  and  measurements  must  be  out- 
grown. He  only  feared  lest  his  declining  powers  might  not 
be  able  to  keep  pace  with  an  ever  advancing  work." 

His  connection  with  the  Board  brought  him  into 
intimate  fellowship  not  only  with  some  of  the  most 
excellent  and  eminent  of  the  clergymen  of  New  York, 
but  with  such  laymen  as  Messrs.  Lenox,  Stuart,  Dodge, 
and  Booth,  for  whom  he  felt  the  most  affectionate  esteem. 
The  Board  meetings  were  a  great  delight  to  him,  and  the 
Secretaries  among  his  most  beloved  friends.  Of  all 
these  noble  men  there  was  none  whom  he  held  in  such 
affectionate  respect  as  the  Hon.  Walter  Lowrie,  whom 
he  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  wonderful  men  of  our 
country  and  our  Church.  This  remarkable  man,  after 
serving  six  years  as  United  States  Senator  contem- 
poraneously with  Webster,  Clay,  and  Calhoun,  was  made 
Secretary  of  the  Senate,  and  held  the  office  for  twelve 
years.  Owing  to  the  peculiarly  delicate  nature  of  this 
office,  and  the  responsibility  connected  with  it,  it  did 


HON.  WALTER  LOWRIE.  69 

not  change  incumbents  with  successive  administrations, 
and  he  might  have  enjoyed  its  honors  and  emoluments 
for  life,  as  did  his  predecessors.  Many  a  rising  lawyer 
would  have  preferred  this  post  to  the  Presidency.  But 
when  called  to  be  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Board 
of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Presbyterian  Church,  he  gave 
up  all  hopes  of  worldly  distinction,  and  devoted  himself 
to  a  life  of  most  faithful  and  self-denying  labor.  When 
asked  why  he  had  given  up  a  post  so  honorable  and 
so  lucrative,  he  answered  that  he  "  chose  the  place  in 
which  there  would  be  the  most  sacrifice  and  the  best 
prospect  of  usefulness  for  Christ." 

Mr.  Carter  writes  of  him  ;  — 

"  There  was  another  friend  to  whom  I  owed  much, 
the  Hon.  Walter  Lowrie.  When  he  came  to  New  York, 
in  1837, 1  was  glad  to  welcome  him.  I  was  then  poor, 
and  could  contribute  little  to  the  cause  of  Foreign  Mis- 
sions ;  but  it  gave  me  great  pleasure  to  aid  him  in  any 
way  I  could  to  commence  his  blessed  work.  He  had 
resigned  a  high  position  in  Congress  to  devote  his  life 
to  the  work  of  our  blessed  Lord  in  foreign  lands.  He 
sent  one  son  to  India,  another  to  China,  and  when  the 
latter  was  murdered  by  pirates  in  the  China  Seas,  he 
sent  a  second  son  there.  I  remember  well  the  morning 
when  the  tidings  came  that  Walter,  a  most  promising 
missionary,  had  gone  to  visit  Bishop  Boone  to  confer 
with  him  on  the  translation  of  the  Bible  into  Chinese. 
On  his  return  a  piratical  band  attacked  the  ship  in 
which  he  sailed.  Walter  was  reading  his  Bible  on 
deck.  They  seized  him  and  cast  him  overboard.  He 
sank  and  rose  again  more  than  once,  and  then  sank  to 
rise  no  more.  The  ripe  scholar,  the  devoted  missionary, 
the  eloquent  preacher,  was  no  more  on  earth.  When 
the  letter  was  read  before  our  Board,  we  sat  in  silence. 


70  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

his  bereaved  father  and  brother  being  of  our  number. 
It  was  the  severest  blow  we  had  ever  received.  We 
were  dumb ;  we  opened  not  our  mouths,  because  God 
did  it.  After  some  time,  one  of  our  number  led  in 
prayer,  and  we  adjourned.  This  was  a  baptism  for  us 
all,  and  brought  a  new  consecration.  A  third  son  went 
to  China,  to  carry  on  the  work  his  noble  brother  had 
so  auspiciously  begun.  He  worked  faithfully  till  the 
Master  called  him  up  higher.  His  widow  and  two 
children  are  our  missionaries  now  at  the  same  post. 

"  When  the  good  old  father  grew  feeble,  he  declined 
to  receive  any  salary  for  his  service.  As  we  insisted  on 
his  taking  it,  he  received  the  money  and  put  it  into  the 
treasury  of  the  Board.  While  he  was  contributing 
liberally  to  the  mission  work,  he  lived  in  Quaker  sim- 
plicity. The  tax-gatherer  called  and  examined  his 
furniture,  and  said,  '  I  shall  put  you  down  for  $3,000.' 
'  On  what  do  you  base  your  estimate  ? '  said  Mr.  Lowrie. 
'  On  what  I  see  of  your  furniture.'  '  You  may  have  it  all 
for  $600.'  There  was  no  more  said  about  taxes.  He 
was  a  living  epistle,  known  and  read  of  all  men.  His 
eldest  son,  Eev.  John  C.  Lowrie,  D.D.,  after  half  a  cen- 
tury of  service  abroad  and  at  home,  still  lives  and  labors 
in  the  Mission  cause,  as  one  of  our  Secretaries." 

Of  another  old  friend  Mr.  Carter  gives  the  following 
reminiscences :  — 

"  Mr.  William  Steel,  an  elder  in  the  Canal  Street 
Church,  a  plain,  unpretending  man,  a  close  student  of 
the  Bible,  was  a  constant  visitor  for  many  years.  His 
conversation  was  to  me  most  instructive.  One  day  he 
was  sitting  in  my  store  reading  a  book,  when  a  tall, 
stately  gentleman  entered  and  took  me  back  to  the  rear 
of  my  store.  He  asked  me  if  I  knew  that  man.  I  told 
him  I  did.     'He  is  the  meanest  man  I  know,'  said  he. 


MR.  WILLIAM   STEEL.  71 

'  He  has  worn  that  cloak  eleven  years.  He  retired  from 
business  with  a  handsome  property,  and  he  is  so  miserly 
that  he  cannot  take  the  use  of  it.'  I  replied,  '  That  man 
visits  the  widow  and  the  fatherless,  and  supplies  their 
need.  He  goes  to  the  Mission  House  and  leaves  fifty 
or  a  hundred  dollars,  but  his  name  never  appears.  The 
gifts  of  a  "  Friend  of  Missions  "  are  very  frequent.  He 
is  the  best  model  of  a  Presbyterian  elder  I  know.' 

"  I  missed  Mr.  Steel  for  a  few  days,  and  when  he 
came  back  he  said  to  me,  '  I  have  received  a  precious 
lesson  since  I  saw  you  last.  One  evening  I  had  made 
some  calls,  and  returning  hung  my  hat  and  cloak  on 
the  stand  in  the  hall  and  went  into  the  parlor.  Without 
any  warning,  I  fell  unconscious  on  the  floor.  My  family 
procured  medical  assistance,  and  after  some  time  I  be- 
came conscious  and  revived.  I  was  apparently  dead 
without  tasting  of  death.  For  many  years  I  had  been 
subject  to  bondage  through  fear  of  death,  and  the  dear 
Lord  has  taught  me  now  that  I  need  not  fear  any  more.' 

"  When  Mr.  Steel  was  more  than  eighty  years  old,  his 
old  partner  came  to  spend  the  day  with  him.  They  had 
sweet  communing,  and  on  parting  the  two  stood  in  front 
of  the  house  at  sunset  and  bade  each  other  farewell.  Mr. 
Steel  returned  to  his  parlor,  and  fell  down  unconscious. 
He  was  not,  for  God  took  him.  How  often  his  instruct- 
ive remarks  have  helped  me  onward  !  One  little  inci- 
dent which  he  related  to  me  I  may  mention  :  '  When  I 
was  a  young  man,  about  the  beginning  of  this  century, 
I  lived  in  New  Jersey.  The  yellow-fever  broke  out  in 
New  York,  and  I  came  to  the  city  to  visit  a  very  dear 
friend.  He  was  attacked  by  the  fever.  In  the  even- 
ing I  walked  along  Beekman  Street  till  I  came  to  the 
Brick  Church.  I  heard  singing,  and  went  in  to  the 
lecture-room.     They  sang  the  ninety-first  Psalm.     It 


72  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

deeply  affected  me.  I  returned  to  my  friend,  and 
watched  by  him  all  night.  I  committed  that  psalm  to 
memory  that  night,  and  felt  that  plague  and  pestilence 
were  no  more  to  be  dreaded.' 

"Among  those  whom  I  met  shortly  after  I  came  to 
New  York  were  two  brothers,  R.  L.  and  Alexander 
Stuart,  the  one  older,  the  other  younger,  than  myself. 
They  began  to  give  small  subscriptions  to  benevolent 
work,  which  increased  with  increasing  prosperity^  They 
first  gave  hundreds,  then  thousands,  then  tens  of  thou- 
sands, and  at  last  hundreds  of  thousands.  For  many 
years  the  elder  brother  spent  the  Monday  mornings 
with  me  at  the  Mission  House.  He  and  Mr.  Lenox 
were  most  conscientious  in  their  attendance  there,  and 
they  were  the  most  liberal  contributors.  I  watched 
their  course  from  year  to  year,  and  it  was  onward  and 
upward.  It  was  no  small  privilege  to  me  to  witness 
how  readily  they  gave  their  time  and  their  money  to 
send  the  Gospel  to  the  ends  of  the  earth.  I  was  often 
tempted  to  exclaim, 

'  Search  we  the  land  of  living  men, 
We  ne'er  shall  see  their  like  again.'  " 

When  Mr.  Carter  was  nearly  eighty  years  of  age,  he 
called  one  day  on  Mrs.  R.  L.  Stuart,  and  she  drew  from 
a  desk  an  old  document  which  she  handed  to  him.  It 
was  a  call  for  the  first  meeting  to  discuss  the  propriety 
of  forming  a  Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  and  was  signed 
by  some  of  the  most  prominent  clergymen  and  laymen 
of  the  church  in  Xew  York,  not  one  of  whom  is  now 
living.  Mrs.  Stuart  said  that  her  husband  had  gone  to 
that  meeting,  and  in  the  enthusiasm  of  his  heart  had 
pledged  himself  to  give  five  hundred  dollars  to  the 
cause.  When  he  came  home,  his  mother  and  his  brother 
Alexander  were  full  of  consternation,  and  asked  him  if 


LOVE   FOR  MISSIONARIES.  73 

lie  expected  to  end  his  days  in  the  poorhouse,  since  he 
squandered  his  money  in  that  way.  "  Ah  ! "  said  Mr. 
Carter,  "  how  little  he  foresaw  that  the  time  was  com- 
ing when  Eobert  and  Alexander  Stuait  would  give 
habitually  fifty  thousand  a  year  to  Foreign  Missions 
and  fifty  thousand  to  Home  Missions  ! "  Truly  he  that 
is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least  will  be  faithful  also  in 
much  when  the  opportunity  comes. 

Mr.  Carter's  love  for  missions  was  shown,  not  only  in 
his  regular  attendance  at  the  Mission  Kooms  and  his 
large  contributions  to  the  work,  but  in  his  personal  in- 
terest in  missionaries.  They  were  ever  welcome  in  his 
home,  and  honored  guests  there ;  his  children  were 
taught  to  reverence  them  as  those  who  had  forsaken  all 
to  follow  Christ,  and  his  ready  sympathy  went  forth  to 
special  cases  of  need.  Weary  workers  were  sent  by  him 
to  the  seaside,  or  to  sanitariums,  medical  attendance  pro- 
vided, and  books  given.  It  would  be  hard  to  say  how 
many  channels  his  benevolence  found.  One  of  the 
most  prominent  missionaries  of  the  Presbyterian  Board 
wrote  him :  "  When  you  think  of  me  as  working  here, 
then  regard  yourself  as  partner  with  me,  as  you  aided  in 
the  building  up  of  my  strength  and  recruiting  me  for 
this  service.  In  a  larger  sense,  you  are  a  partner  in  all 
our  labors,  since  you  uphold  us  by  your  gifts  and  coun- 
sels and  prayers." 

In  18J:3,  Mr.  Carter  was  greatly  interested  for  the 
Free  Church  of  Scotland,  which  had  just  come  out  from 
the  Establishment.  Much  sympathy  was  felt  for  the 
four  hundred  and  seventy-four  ministers  who  had  left 
their  churches  and  manses  for  conscience'  sake,  and 
were  thrown  with  their  families  upon  the  world.  The 
Scotch  Church,  then  in  Grand  Street,  was  especially  in- 
terested for  their  countrymen,  although  it  is  said  that  a 


74  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

smile  rippled  over  the  congregation  when  Dr.  McElroy 
announced  from  the  pulpit  that  the  Eev.  Messrs.  Begg 
and  Eobh  were  coming  as  a  deputation  from  Scotland 
to  tell  the  story  of  the  disruption  to  their  brethren  in 
America.  Dr.  William  Cunningham  of  Edinburgh  came 
over  at  this  time  (1843),  and  Mr.  Carter  had  a  very 
pleasant  and  cordial  friendship  with  him  then,  and 
afterwards  in  Scotland. 

Mr.  E.  L.  Stuart  and  Mr.  Carter  were  appointed  a 
committee  to  collect  money,  and  have  it  ready  when  the 
Scotch  delegation  called  for  it.  Mr.  Carter  subscribed 
two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  —  a  large  sum  for  him  at 
that  time.  One  of  the  elders,  an  excellent  man,  but 
with  a  good  deal  of  the  proverbial  Scottish  carefulness, 
came  to  his  store  to  remonstrate  with  him  for  his  prod- 
igality. He  told  him  that  he  had  been  very  success- 
ful for  a  young  man  so  short  a  time  in  business,  but 
that  such  want  of  prudence  would  inevitably  result  in 
failure.  The  old  gentleman  had  asked,  when  he  came 
in,  for  a  cedar  lead-pencil,  price  six  cents ;  and  as  he 
talked  he  was  busily  engaged  in  cutting  it  in  halves. 
When  the  work  was  done,  he  held  out  the  two  pieces  to 
Mr.  Carter,  saying,  "  Take  whichever  you  like,  and  I  '11 
give  you  the  three  cents  for  the  other  half."  To  the 
end  of  his  life,  Mr.  Carter  had  an  occasional  laugh  over 
this  object  lesson  in  frugality. 

Another  member  of  the  church  was  the  possessor  of 
a  large  fortune  won  by  his  own  exertions.  He  was  a 
good  man,  but  it  was  sometimes  hard  for  him  to  part 
with  the  money  which  was  the  fruit  of  so  much  toil 
and  self-denial.  His  wife  always  co-operated  with  Mr. 
Carter  in  his  efforts  to  make  her  husband  see  his  duty 
in  the  matter  of  giving,  and  would  add  her  persuasions 
to  his.     One  time  a  large  sum  of  money  was  needed  for 


ELDERS   IN   THE   SCOTCH   CHURCH.  75 

some  church  repairs,  and  Mr.  Carter  tried  in  vain  to 
get  his  friend  to  subscribe  the  same  amount  that  he 
himself  intended  giving.  After  a  long  conversation,  he 
was  obliged  to  go  away  repulsed.  On  reaching  home, 
he  thought  the  matter  over,  and  sat  down  and  wrote  a 
note  to  his  friend,  saying  that  he  feared  he  had  said  too 
much  in  the  way  of  urging,  and  if  so  he  asked  forgive- 
ness, and  hoped  that  nothing  he  had  said  would  weaken 
the  strong  bond  of  friendship  that  united  them.  Im- 
mediately on  receiving  the  letter,  the  gentleman  came 
to  him,  saying,  "  I  believe  you  were  right  and  I  wrong, 
after  all.  How  much  do  you  think  I  ought  to  give  ? " 
And  he  immediately  wrote  a  check  for  the  desired 
amount. 

Mr.  Carter  loved  to  tell  a  story  of  one  of  the  elders 
of  the  Scotch  Church,  who  came  to  New  York  a  poor 
boy,  and,  when  he  had  earned  ten  dollars  by  wheeling 
goods  in  a  barrow,  attended  one  evening  a  meeting  of 
the  church  called  to  pay  off  a  debt.  When  subscrip- 
tions were  asked  for,  the  lad  gave  five  dollars,  which  in 
after  life  he  declared  to  be  the  largest  gift  he  had  ever 
made,  being  one  half  of  his  earthly  possessions.  This 
good  man  afterwards  amassed  quite  a  fortune,  but  a 
large  portion  of  it  was  swept  away  in  a  fire.  Shortly 
after,  Dr.  IMcElroy  was  going  about,  as  was  his  yearly 
custom,  collecting  money  for  the  various  church  chari- 
ties, but  lie  passed  Mr.  E 's  door,  thinking  that  he 

would  spare  him  the  pain  of  refusing  his  usual  gifts. 

Mr.  R met  him  on  the  street,  and  said,  "You  have 

not  called  on  me  yet  for  my  subscriptions."  "  No," 
said  the  Doctor,  "  I  had  not  the  heart  to  ask  you,  know- 
ing how  heavy  your  losses  have  been."  "  Eetrenchment 
with  me  must  not  begin  at  the  house  of  God.  I  shall 
double  my  subscriptions  this  year." 


76l  life   of    ROBERT   CARTER. 

A  wealthy  member  of  the  church  said  to  Mr.  Carter 
that  he  wanted  to  give  systematically  to  the  cause  of 
Christ,  but  had  not  confidence  in  his  own  judgment 
as  to  apportionment,  and  he  wished  that,  whenever  Mr. 
Carter  gave  to  any  object,  he  would  give  a  correspond- 
ing sum  for  him.  Mr.  Carter  advised  him  to  study  the 
subject  for  himself,  that  he  might  give  intelligently  as 
well  as  systematically ;  adding  that  he  would  willingly 
aid  him  with  his  counsel  whenever  he  wished. 

A  wealthy  and  eccentric  gentleman,  of  great  lib- 
erality, who  was  constantly  applied  to  by  sharpers 
for  money,  once  asked  Mr.  Carter  to  be  his  almoner, 
because  he  felt  sure  that  his  gifts  would  be  wisely 
applied  ;  but  he  declined  the  responsibility,  saying  that 
the  use  of  money  was  a  talent  for  which  every  one 
must  give  an  account  for  himself  to  God.  This  same 
gentleman  arose  to  speak  at  an  anniversary  meeting  of 
the  American  Bible  Society.  A  friend  sitting  beside 
Mr.  Carter  on  the  platform  said,  "  Do  stop  him.  You 
are  the  only  one  who  has  influence  with  him,  and  he  is 
so  peculiar  he  may  say  something  that  will  spoil  the 
meeting."  Mr.  Carter  declined  to  interfere,  very  hap- 
pily as  it  turned  out,  for  the  gentleman  only  spoke  long 
enough  to  say  that  he  was  so  impressed  with  the  im- 
portance of  the  work  of  the  Bible  Society  that  he  had 
determined  to  give  ten  thousand  dollars  to  the  cause. 
Mr.  Carter  turned  to  his  friend,  and  said,  "  Was  it  not 
well  to  let  him  go  on  ? " 


CHAPTEE    IV. 

IN  the  summer  of  1846,  Mr.  Carter  again  went  to 
Europe,  taking  with  him  his  wife  and  eldest  son, 
a  child  of  eight  years,  and  his  infant  daughter. 

"  In  that  second  visit,  I  met  many  men  in  Scotland 
and  England  who  did  me  much  good.  It  was  the  last 
year  of  Dr.  Chalmers's  life,  and  I  was  touched  by  his 
kind  reception  of  me.  He  inquired  particularly  about 
the  working  of  the  voluntary  system  in  America,  and 
expressed  his  pleasure  at  meeting  me.  '  We  have  cor- 
responded for  many  years,  and  it  is  well  to  meet,'  he 
said.  I  told  him  how  Mr.  E.  L.  Stuart  and  I  had  gone 
from  house  to  house  and  solicited  aid  for  the  Free  Church. 
I  can  never  forget  the  childlike  simplicity  and  humble 
bearing  of  the  man  whom  I  had  so  long  revered.  I  met 
Dr.  Guthrie  too  at  that  time,  and  it  was  the  beginning 
of  many  years  of  pleasant  intercourse.  Dr.  John  Brown 
and  Dr.  Norman  McLeod  showed  me  no  little  kindness. 
In  England  I  attended  the  first  great  meeting  of  Evan- 
gelical Clergymen  at  the  Alliance,  where  I  met  Edward 
Bickersteth,  Baptist  Noel,  Tholuck,  and  many  others. 
In  the  list  of  American  delegates  republished  recently, 
Charles  Butler  was  the  only  one  that  remained  with 
me.  Joseph  died,  and  his  brethren,  and  all  that  gen- 
eration." 

The  little  party  returned  to  America  on  the  "  Great 
Western,"    Captain   Matthews,    sailing   September  12. 


78  LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

There  were  a  great  number  of  clergymen  on  board  who 
were  returning  from  the  meeting  of  the  Alliance.  The 
voyage  began  under  the  brightest  auspices,  but  on  the 
afternoon  of  Saturday,  September  19,  the  ship  encoun- 
tered a  terrible  storm,  which  lasted  for  thirty-six  hours, 
during  which  period  little  hope  was  entertained  that 
the  vessel  could  ever  reach  land.  The  captain  himself 
wrote,  "  It  is  to  Divine  Providence  alone  that  we  are  all 
indebted  for  our  safety,  for  during  my  long  experience 
at  sea  I  never  witnessed  so  severe  a  storm  ;  and  were  it 
not  for  the  good  qualities  of  my  noble  ship,  under  the 
direction  of  God,  she  could  not  have  weathered  it." 
When  the  danger  had  all  passed,  the  captain  said  to 
one  of  the  passengers,  "  Thrice  on  deck  I  thought  de- 
struction inevitable.  Each  time  a  sea  of  such  magni- 
tude and  power  came  at  the  ship  that  I  thought  it  was 
all  over  with  us.  But  unexpectedly  each  broke  just  at 
the  side  of  the  ship.  Sir,  the  hand  of  the  Lord  was 
in  it." 

A  narrative  of  the  voyage,  prepared  by  one  of  the 
passengers  was  afterwards  published  by  Mr.  Carter. 
The  little  book  was  entitled  "  God  in  the  Storm." 
During  the  storm,  the  passengers  met  more  than  once 
in  the  cabin  for  united  prayer,  although  the  condi- 
tion of  the  ship  was  such  that  it  was  almost  impos- 
sible to  move  about,  and  there  were  no  meals  served, 
"  the  stewards  bringing  such  articles  of  food  as  were 
most  convenient  to  those  who  felt  any  disposition  to 
eat."  As  soon  as  the  danger  was  over,  and  the  ele- 
ments were  sufficiently  quiet,  although  "they  were  still 
tossed  about  like  a  feather  in  the  wind,"  on  the  morn- 
ing of  Tuesday,  the  2  2d,  the  passengers  assembled  in 
the  main  saloon,  "  to  offer  thanksgivings  to  God  for 
their  preservation  through  the  recent  protracted  storm." 


THE  "GREAT  WESTERN"  IN  A  STORM.  79 

At  this  meeting,  an  address  was  delivered  by  the  Rev, 
Lyman  Beecher,  D.D.  From  this,  a  few  extracts  are 
culled,  describing  the  danger. 

"  For  tliirty-six  hours  the  wind  raved,  and  the  waves 
rolled  with  a  fury  and  power  unknown,  for  so  long  a  time, 
to  the  most  experienced  navigators  on  board.  Travelling 
mountains,  with  the  power  of  the  iceberg,  the  avalanche, 
or  the  Niagara,  for  one  day  and  two  nights,  as  far  as  eye 
could  reach,  covered  the  surface  of  the  deep,  thundering 
loud  and  unceasingly  around  us.  The  onset  commenced  on 
•Saturday  night,  and  raged  increasingly  till  Sabbath  morn- 
ing, when,  instead  of  mitigation,  it  gathered  new  power, 
and  then  commenced  the  work  of  desolation. 

"  The  sails  on  the  fore-yards,  clewed  down,  burst  from 
their  fastenings,  and  roared  and  flapped  furiously,  defying 
control.  In  the  mean  time,  the  sea  rose  rapidly,  breaking 
over  and  against  the  ship.  At  4  p.  M.  the  wind  had  risen  to 
a  hurricane,  veering  to  the  northwest ;  the  ship  at  the  same 
time  broke  from  her  course  into  the  trough  of  the  sea,  —  a 
condition  of  extreme  peril,  during  which  a  sea  broke  in  upon 
the  main  deck,  and  drove  a  great  quantity  of  water  into  the 
engine-room,  a  stroke  at  the  heart  of  life,  our  machinery. 

"At  11  A.  M.  a  heavy  wave  broke  over  the  fore  part  of 
the  starboard  wheelhouse,  and  drove  the  iron  lifeboat  and  the 
icehouse,  of  some  six  or  seven  tons,  furiously  against  the 
wheelhouse  and  side  of  the  ship ;  and  before  they  could  be 
fastened,  the  careening  of  the  ship  sent  them  sundry  times 
back  and  forth,  threatening  instant  destruction.  Such  and 
so  rapid  were  the  successions  of  disaster,  that  an  attempt 
was  made  to  wear  ship,  as  less  perilous  than  her  present 
condition  ;  but  finding  her  uncontrollable,  she  was  permitted 
to  return  to  her  course. 

"  About  noon,  a  mighty  wave  struck  the  starboard  wheel- 
house  and  tore  up  the  fastenings  of  spikes  and  iron  bands 
and  bolts,  throwing  off  the  whole  top  and  outside  covering. 


80  LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

breaking  the  under  half  of  the  spring  beam,  and  shaking  to 
their  foundation  and  lowering  perceptibly  the  timbers  which 
sustained  the  wheel,  thus  enfeebling  the  arm  of  our  power  in 
the  climax  of  our  danger.  The  wave,  with  portions  of  the 
wreck,  rolled  deep  and  dark  over  the  quarter-deck.  One  of 
these  struck  the  captain  on  the  head,  while  the  wave  drove 
him  insensible  to  the  stern  of  the  ship,  where  the  network 
barely  saved  him  from  an  ocean  grave. 

"  About  one  o'clock,  while  many  were  seated  in  the  lower 
cabin,  a  sea  struck  the  ship,  a  tremendous  crash  was  heard 
on  deck,  and  instantly  the  cabin  was  darkened  and  torrents 
of  water  came  pouring  down  through  the  skylights.  All 
sprang  to  their  feet,  and  a  scream  of  terror  rang  through 
the  ship,  which  pitched  and  rolled  so  fearfully  that  with 
no  little  difficulty  we  could  maintain  our  position  upon  our 
seats,  and  not  a  few  received  bruises  and  contusions. 

"  In  these  circumstances,  a  proposition  was  made,  and  ac- 
cepted by  all  who  could  attend,  to  meet  in  the  lower  cabin 
for  prayer.  It  was  prayer,  not  in  forms  and  words  merely, 
but  the  importunity  of  the  heart,  crushed  by  perils  from 
which  it  could  not  escape,  and  pressed  by  the  complex  inter- 
ests of  time  and  eternity,  looking  up  to  the  only  power  in 
the  universe  that  could  save.  In  the  evening,  Dr.  Balch 
administered  the  communion  in  the  cabin.  In  the  mean 
time  the  storm  raged  on,  but  from  the  time  of  our  public 
supplications  the  desolations  ceased. 

"  We  had  hoped  the  preceding  night  that  the  morning 
would  bring  a  change,  and  in  the  morning  that  noon  would 
witness  a  favorable  crisis,  and  at  noon  that  evening  would 
realize  our  hopes.  But  the  storm  travelled  on  from  morning 
to  noon,  and  from  noon  to  evening,  with  augmented  power, 
till  it  became  evident  that  we  must  encounter  the  terrors  of 
another  night ;  and  the  general  opinion  was  that  the  ship 
could  not  outride  the  storm.  And  now,  while  prayer  un- 
ceasing went  up  to  God,  I  have  cause  to  know  that  on  the 
part  of  numbers  immediate  preparations  for  eternity  com- 


STORM   ON  THE   ATLANTIC.  81 

menced,  and  not  a  few,  I  trust,  with  calm  resignation,  and 
peace  that  passeth  knowledge,  and  joy  unspeakable,  were 
prepared  to  meet  their  God. 

"And  now  the  dreaded  night  came  on  in  darkness  visible 
and  terrible  convulsions.  It  was  long  and  dreadful.  First 
came  a  long  slow  roll  of  the  ship  to  and  fro,  almost  from 
beam's  end  to  beam's  end,  thrice  repeated.  Then  ensued  a 
momentary  quiet  and  onward  motion  of  the  ship,  and  then 
suddenly  the  thunder  of  waves  began  again,  louder  and 
louder,  and  more  powerful  and  rending,  as  if  every  portion 
of  our  ship  would  be  torn  in  fragments  and  scattered  upon 
the  deep.  Then  gradually  tlie  thunderings  ceased,  as  if  the 
elements,  wearied  and  breathless  by  their  efforts,  had  paused 
to  rest  and  gain  breath  for  another  assault.  About  five 
o'clock  a  more  terrible  squall  struck  the  ship  suddenly,  —  a 
perfect  tornado.  She  careened  over,  and  buried  her  gun- 
wales in  the  ocean,  her  wheelhouse  covered  by  the  waves 
that  helped  the  wind  to  lay  her  on  her  side.  There  she  lay 
for  a  few  moments,  stricken  powerless,  at  the  mercy  of  the 
waves.  At  this  critical  moment,  when  another  wave  might 
have  finished  her,  the  engine  was  true  to  her  duty,  and  round 
and  round  thundered  her  iron  wings,  when,  gradually  re- 
covering her  upright  position,  the  good  ship  came  up  to  her 
course." 

The  captain  afterwards  stated  that  the  water  was 
within  six  inches  of  the  fires,  and  that  another  wave 
such  as  they  had  experienced  before  must  have  dis- 
abled the  machinery,  and  settled  the  fate  of  the  ship. 

Mr  Carter  was  one  of  those  who  took  active  part  in 
all  the  religious  services  of  this  exciting  period.  His 
son  carried  through  life  the  impression  made  by  his 
father's  calmness  and  faith  throughout  the  peril.  He 
remembers  his  taking  him  in  his  arms,  and  saying, 
■'  We  are  in  great  danger.  It  is  very  probable  that  our 
ship  will  go  down,  down,  down  into  the  great  sea,  and 

6 


82  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

we  shall  never  see  your  two  dear  little  brothers  in  this 
world ;  but  if  we  love  and  trust  the  Lord  Jesus,  our 
souls  will  go  up,  up,  up,  into  the  blessed  heaven,  and 
we  shall  live  always  with  our  God." 

He  often  afterwards  described  a  scene  when  he  en- 
tered his  state-room  and  found  his  little  son  standing 
by  his  mother,  who  was  very  ill  in  her  berth,  and  trying 
to  comfort  her.  "  Don't  be  afraid,  Mamma.  Don't  you 
remember  how  we  were  upset  in  the  stage-coach  on 
the  top  of  Sonter  Hill?  If  God  had  wanted  us  to  die, 
don't  you  think  he  would  have  let  us  be  killed  then  ? " 
Just  then  a  tremendous  wave  swept  over  the  ship, 
rushing  down  into  the  cabin,  spreading  darkness  and 
confusion  about  them,  and  the  little  fellow  fell  upon 
his  knees  with  a  cry  to  God  for  help. 

The  latter  part  of  the  voyage  was  rendered  very 
pleasant  by  the  society  of  so  many  congenial  spirits 
as  were  brought  together  by  the  return  of  the  Evan- 
gelical Alliance  delegates.  He  tells  the  following  inci- 
dents of  this  time. 

"  In  1846  I  took  my  family  to  England,  and  suc- 
ceeded in  making  arrangements  for  several  important 
works.  On  my  return  voyage,  the  venerable  Lyman 
Beecher  was  a  fellow  passenger.  One  day,  seated  on 
deck,  he  asked  me  what  books  I  had  brought  out  with 
me,  —  anything  which  would  be  of  use  at  home.  I 
told  him  that  I  had  spent  some  pleasant  time  with 
Dr.  Chalmers.  He  had  recommended  a  friend  of  his,  a 
bookseller,  to  issue  an  edition  of  Turretin's  Works  in 
four  volumes,  in  Latin,  and  I  was  to  join  him  and  take 
half  the  edition.  Dr.  Beecher  shook  his  head,  and  said, 
'  If  you  have  not  a  good  backbone,  that  will  floor  you.' 
1  asked  why  he  thought  so.  '  I  have  studied  that  book 
carefully,  and  it  will  not  go.     We  have  gone  far  beyond 


DR.   LYMAN  BEECHER.  83 

that  now.  But,'  said  he, '  would  you  like  me  to  tell 
you  how  you  could  make  your  fortune  ? '  I  said,  '  Yes.' 
*  I  propose  to  issue  a  uniform  edition  of  my  works,  and 
they  will  go  like  hot  cakes.  Would  you  like  to  publish 
them  ? '  I  replied,  that  they  would  suit  New  England 
better  than  New  York.  Some  months  later,  when  Tur- 
retin  was  ready,  a  gentleman  came  into  my  store  and 
asked  for  it.  He  sat  down  and  examined  it  a  little,  and, 
turning  to  me,  said,  '  1  wonder  you  ventured  on  this 
large  work.'  I  told  him  that  others  had  shared  in 
that  idea,  and  told  the  story  of  Dr.  Beecher.  He 
laughed  heartily,  and  said,  '  He  is  my  father.'  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  had  just  come  to  Brooklyn,  and  I  had 
not  met  him  before.  My  share  of  the  edition  was  soon 
disposed  of,  and  some  hundreds  more  came  from  Scot- 
laud,  which  found  a  ready  market." 

"  Shortly  after  my  return  from  England,  I  published 
an  edition  of  Henry's  Commentary,  in  six  volumes, 
octavo.  It  was  my  largest  undertaking.  The  stereo- 
type plates  were  printed  by  a  printer  in  Spruce  Street, 
who  kept  them  deposited  in  his  vault.  One  day  he 
came  to  me  and  said  he  required  the  room  in  the  vault, 
and  asked  me  to  remove  them  to  my  own  vault  in 
Broadway.  I  told  him  to  take  them  out  at  his  own 
convenience  and  send  them  to  me,  and  I  would  pay  for 
the  trouble,  but  not  to  leave  them  an  hour  after  they 
were  taken  from  his  vault.  Contrary  to  these  orders, 
he  took  them  out  on  a  Saturday,  left  them  on  the 
floor  of  his  office,  and  that  night  several  buildings  were 
burned  down  and  these  plates  went  with  them,  a  dead 
loss  to  me.  They  cost  originally  about  eighteen  thou- 
sand dollars.  The  next  year  I  went  again  to  England, 
and  bought  another  set  of  plates,  from  which  we  have 
printed  many  editions." 


84  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

The  following  sketch  of  his  dear  old  friend,  Thomas  De 
Witt,  D.D.,  of  the  Collegiate  Dutch  Reformed  Church, 
contains  some  reminiscences  of  the  visit  to  Europe  in 
1846,  and  is  therefore  inserted  here. 

"  My  father  landed  in  New  York  on  a  Sabbath  morn- 
ing, and  I  took  him  with  me  to  church.  Dr.  De  Witt 
was  in  the  pulpit.  His  subject  was  the  tomb  in  the 
garden.  The  last  step  in  the  humiliation  of  our  dear 
Redeemer  drew  forth  the  tenderness,  the  rich  illustra- 
tion, and  the  warm  love  of  the  youthful  preacher.  My 
father  had  been  six  weeks  at  sea.  He  was  hungerinL' 
and  thirsting  for  the  bread  of  life,  and  he  found  it  that 
day.  '  Oh  ! '  said  he,  as  we  left  the  church, '  what  a  ser- 
mon !  He  is  a  wonderful  preacher.  He  must  be  very 
popular.'  '  Yes,'  said  I, '  he  is  one  of  the  most  effective 
preachers  in  our  city.'  1  had  been  only  a  year  in  New 
York  then,  and  had  not  been  introduced  to  the  Doctor, 
but  I  had  a  deep  reverence  for  him. 

"  Shortly  after  I  commenced  business  Dr.  De  Witt 
came  to  see  me.  He  talked  so  pleasantly  that  I  was 
induced  to  lay  before  him  my  plan  of  work.  He 
listened  patiently,  and  w-as  evidently  much  pleased. 
He  said,  '  I  shall  call  attention  to  your  work  in  the 
Christian  Intelligencer.  We  need  such  a  store  here.' 
In  the  following  week  he  fulfilled  his  promise,  and 
urged  the  clergymen  and  members  of  the  churches  to 
call  and  see  my  stock.  The  library  of  the  converted 
Jew,  Mr.  Fry,  had  been  sold  at  auction,  and  I  had 
bought  a  large  part  of  it.  The  folios,  too  large  to  go  on 
shelves,  were  strewed  on  the  floor,  and  the  good  Doctor 
bought  the  Works  of  Bishop  Reynolds,  a  huge  folio. 
I  offered  to  send  it  home  for  him,  but  he  said,  '  No, 
I  shall  take  it  myself.'  A  few  days  after  the  notice 
in  the  Intelligencer,  a  clergyman  from  Ulster  County 


DR.   DE   WITT.  85 

came  in  and  took  a  number  of  the  folios  and  gave  me 
SI  10  in  gold  for  them.  I  think  that  was  the  largest 
sale  I  had  made.  For  nearly  forty  years  the  kind- 
hearted  Doctor  treated  me  as  a  son.  His  reviews  came 
out  week  after  week  in  the  papers,  and  they  were  writ- 
ten by  a  graceful  pen.  In  1846  I  had  the  privilege  of 
accompanying  him  and  his  daughter  to  England.  Be- 
fore we  landed,  he  said  to  me :  '  If  you  will  go  direct 
from  Liverpool  to  Edinburgh,  I  will  go  with  you.  I 
had  intended  to  go  to  Holland  first ;  but  as  you  are 
acquainted  in  Scotland  and  I  am  a  stranger  there,  I 
would  like  to  go  with  you.'  To  this  I  gladly  assented. 
We  took  Melrose,  Dryburgh,  and  Abbotsford  on  our 
way,  stopped  a  few  hours  in  my  native  village,  where 
we  took  tea  with  the  old  minister  that  had  baptized  all 
my  father's  eleven  children  and  had  received  me  at  the 
age  of  fourteen  into  the  church,  and  who  was  in  my 
eyes  a  meet  companion  for  the  good  Doctor.  A  little 
incident  occurred  which  has  often  come  up  to  me  since. 
On  our  way  from  Melrose  to  Dryburgh,  where  Sir 
Walter  Scott  was  buried,  we  crossed  the  Tweed  in  a 
ferry-boat.  The  Doctor,  rubbing  his  hands,  exclaimed, 
'  If  this  is  so  beautiful,  what  must  heaven  be  ? '  In  Ed- 
inburgh we  met  Dr.  Chalmers,  with  whom  we  spent  two 
delightful  forenoons.  We  also  met  Drs.  Guthrie,  Cand- 
lish,  Cunningham,  and  others,  and  the  dear  Doctor  was 
in  his  element.  On  Sabbath  we  heard  Guthrie,  Gordon, 
and  Candlish  preach.  In  the  evening  the  Doctor  said 
to  me,  '  What  a  day  this  has  been  !  such  preaching  ! ' 

"  When  he  visited  my  store,  he  usually  inquired  what 
success  this  book  and  that  had.  He  seemed  to  take 
a  personal  interest  in  them,  as  if  he  had  been  a  part- 
ner. On  one  occasion  he  bought  a  number  of  books 
for  a  son  of  Dr.  Scudder,  who  was  a  student  at  New 


86  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Brunswick.  He  said  to  me,  '  Would  you  like  to  give 
him  something  ? '  I  had  just  published  Poole's  Annota- 
tions, in  three  imperial  octavo  volumes.  I  said,  '  I  will 
give  him  this.'  About  two  years  later,  a  young  man 
entered  my  store  and  bought  some  books.  He  said 
to  me,  '  You  gave  my  brother  Poole's  Commentary ;  I 
value  it  very  highly,  and  need  it  as  much  as  he.'  I 
gave  it  to  him.  Still  later,  a  third  came  with  the  same 
story,  and  received  it.  '  How  many  sons  has  your  fa- 
ther ? '  I  asked.  '  Seven.'  '  And  do  you  suppose  they 
will  all  study  for  the  ministry  ? '  'I  suppose  they  will.' 
How  many  got  Poole  I  do  not  remember,  but  I  think 
it  was  good  seed  cast  into  good  ground. 

"  When  the  Doctor  made  his  visits  among  his  peo- 
ple, he  included  my  family.  And  oh  how  pleasant  it 
sounded,  when  I  returned  home  in  the  evening,  to  hear 
my  dear  wife  say, '  Dr.  De  Witt  was  here  to-day ' !  The 
Wednesday  before  he  died,  my  wife  and  I  paid  him  a 
visit.  It  was  a  very  tender  one.  He  said,  '  Whether 
it  is  my  phlegmatic  constitution  or  not,  I  cannot  say, 
but  I  have  not  had  a  doubt  of  my  interest  in  Christ.' 
He  seemed  in  the  land  of  Beulah.  He  was  seated  in 
his  arm-chair  in  the  library  in  perfect  peace.  Oh,  how 
much  I  owe  to  him !    Verily  he  has  his  reward." 

It  would  not  perhaps  be  too  much  to  say,  that  there 
was  no  layman  in  this  country  more  largely  known 
among  the  clergy  than  Robert  Carter.  His  store  for 
many  years,  especially  after  its  removal  to  Broadway, 
almost  served  the  purpose  of  a  ministers'  exchange  or 
a  ministerial  club-room.  On  Monday  mornings,  the 
minister's  rest  day,  the  store  would  be  filled  with  cler- 
gymen, and  the  most  delightful  conversations  and  dis- 
cussions would  be  carried  on,  in  all  which  Mr.  Carter 
took  his  part  and  held  his  own.     Ministers  from  neigh- 


FRIENDS  AMONG  THE   CLERGY.  87 

boring  towns  would  come  in  for  the  purpose  of  joining 
the  charmed  circle.  The  Princeton  and  Union  Semi- 
nary Professors  were  often  there.  None  of  them  were 
more  revered  and  beloved  by  Mr.  Carter  than  Dr.  James 
W.  Alexander;  but  there  was  a  long  list  of  others 
whom  he  delighted  to  meet.  Among  the  honored 
names  are  those  of  the  Hodges  and  Alexanders,  of 
Drs.  Miller,  Smith,  Skinner,  McElroy,  Potts,  Krebs, 
Murray,  Phillips,  Hutton,  and  Cuyler. 

Episcopal  and  Methodist  bishops  and  clergy,  minis- 
ters of  the  Baptist,  Dutch  Reformed,  and  other  denomi- 
nations, mingled  with  the  rest,  and  it  almost  seemed 
as  if  it  might  be  said  that  the  idea  that  there  is  "  no 
sect  in  heaven"  had  been  realized  on  earth.  In  Mr. 
Carter's  heart  the  unity  and  brotherhood  of  the  Church 
of  Christ  was  an  accepted  fact.  Among  his  dearest 
personal  friends  were  Bishop  Mcllvaine  and  Drs.  Tyng, 
Newton,  and  Muhlenberg  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  all 
of  whom  were  frequenters  of  the  symposiums  at  his 
store.  On  his  list  of  authors  there  are  as  many  Epis- 
copal as  Presbyterian  names,  and  Baptists,  Methodists, 
Congregationalists,  and  Quakers  are  all  represented.  It 
may  astonish  some  of  his  orthodox  friends  to  know 
that  there  are  even  Unitarian  and  Roman  Catholic 
names  on  the  list.  And  yet  he  was  most  conscien- 
tious in  regard  to  never  publishing  anything  which  he 
did  not  personally  accept  as  true,  and  calculated  to  do 
good. 

He  was  so  careful  in  regard  to  publishing  nothing 
that  he  could  not  approve,  that  he  seldom  published 
anything  that  he  had  not  read.  There  were  a  few  of 
his  authors  whose  opinions  he  was  as  sure  of  as  he 
was  of  his  own,  and  whose  writings  he  accepted  with- 
out reading.     This  careful  supervision  involved  an  im- 


88  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

rnense  amount  of  reading  of  manuscripts,  often  to  a 
late  hour  at  night,  sometimes  in  very  difficult  hand- 
writing, and  yet  to  the  close  of  his  life  he  never  used 
spectacles. 

His  authors  were  always  his  friends.  At  his  funeral 
Dr.  McCosh  paid  a  warm  tribute  to  his  liberal  dealings 
with  him.  Spurgeon  wrote  to  him  on  one  occasion,  "  I 
am  glad  that  Eobert  Carter  and  Brothers  are  not  only 
publishers  of  my  sermons,  but  also  true  and  generous 
friends,  with  whose  conduct  I  am  more  than  satisfied." 
Dr.  Guthrie  and  his  family  bore  similar  testimony. 
After  his  death.  Dr.  Macduff  of  Glasgow  wrote  an 
article  about  him  for  a  Scottish  paper,  from  which  the 
following  is  an  extract :  — 

"  In  these  days,  when  the  questions  of  copyright  and 
royalty  between  this  country  and  America  are  keenly  de- 
bated, and  caustic  reflections  are  often,  and  I  doubt  not  at 
times  with  good  reason,  thrown  out  regarding  the  niggardly 
dealings  of  Transatlantic  publishers,  it  is  only  a  pleasure  and 
a  duty  on  the  part  of  an  author  to  record  with  gratitude  an 
exception. 

*'  My  intercourse  with  his  house  extends  over  a  quarter  of 
a  century.  In  addition  to  modest  royalties  paid  by  the  firm, 
there  has  been  over  and  above,  for  a  long  course  of  years,  a 
personal  annual  gift  of  X25.  More  than  once  I  attempted 
remonstrance.  It  was  of  no  avail.  Regularly  as  the  end 
of  January  came  around,  the  well  known  yellow  envelope 
made  its  appearance  with  its  wonted  contents,  the  value  of 
which  was  greatly  enhanced  by  the  warm  and  generous 
words  which  invariably  accompanied  it.  We  had  met  more 
than  once  pleasantly,  both  in  this  country  and  on  the  Con- 
tinent. On  the  latter  occasion,  we  formed  one  of  a  happy 
travelling  party  with  the  late  Dr.  Guthrie.  Possibly  from 
his  reticence  regarding  many  a  good  deed,  he  might  not  like 
my  making  this  small  revelation.     But  I  make  it,  as  I  think 


A   PEACEMAKER.  89 

it  worth  making.  And  I  am  not  sorry,  for  other  and  bet- 
ter than  money  reasons,  —  for  having  the  opportunity  along 
with  the  many  who  knew  and  prized  his  worth,  of  adding  a 
stone  to  the  cairn  of  Robert  Carter." 

These  are  but  specimens  of  many  similar  testimonies, 
chosen  only  because  the  authors  are  of  world-wide 
reputation. 

In  1848  he  took  into  partnership  with  him  his  two 
youngest  brothers,  Walter  and  Peter,  and  removed  to 
the  store  No.  285  Broadway,  where  they  remained  eight 
years.  The  relations  between  the  brothers  were  always 
of  the  most  affectionate  nature,  never  shadowed  by  the 
slightest  approach  to  a  difference.  When  separated, 
letters  were  interchanged  every  day.  When  one  was 
sick,  the  others  saw  him  daily.  The  relationship  be- 
tween them  was  like  that  of  father  and  son  added  to 
that  of  brother. 

Mr.  Peter  Carter,  who  was  associated  with  his  brother 
forty-nine  years,  first  as  clerk  and  then  as  partner,  and 
who  was  nearly  seventeen  years  a  member  of  his  family, 
probably  knowing  him  better  than  any  other  man, 
thus  writes  of  him  :  — 

"  My  brother  was  pre-eminently  a  peacemaker.  He  greatly 
delighted  in  the  beatitude  of  Matthew  v.  9,  and  was  always 
ready  to  use  his  influence  to  heal  and  prevent  division.  One 
day,  many  years  ago,  a  leading  business  man  of  the  city,  the 
senior  partner  of  a  firm  of  two  brothers,  called  at  our  store 
and  said,  *  My  brother  is  about  to  leave  me,  not  from  any  dis- 
satisfaction, but  because  he  thinks  it  is  his  duty  to  engage  in 
something  else,  and  he  has  the  most  extravagant  ideas  of  the 
value  of  his  share  in  the  business.     What  am  I  to  do  1  * 

"  My  brother  thought  a  moment,  and  then  said,  *  If  I  were 
you,  I  would  say  to  him  in  the  kindest  way,  "  Write  on  a  piece 
of  paper  just  what  you  think  you  ought  to  have  for  your 


90  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

share  in  the  business."  If  it  is  at  all  reasonable  or  possible 
for  you  to  grant  it,  do  so  by  all  means.  But  if  not,  then  see 
if  he  will  not  modify  it  a  little  ;  but  grant  it  as  he  writes  it,  if 
you  possibly  can,  for  you  will  never  be  sorry  for  doing  so.' 

"The  gentleman  went  away  determined  to  act  on  this  ad- 
vice. In  about  a  week  he  came  back  to  say  that  he  had  done 
as  my  brother  suggested,  and  that  the  written  demand  was 
much  more  reasonable  than  he  expected,  so  he  granted  it  at 
once.  The  brothers  parted  the  best  of  friends.  Some  years 
after,  when  the  eldest  brother,  who  had  been  greatly  pros- 
pered in  business,  died,  in  his  will  he  left  his  younger  brother, 
who  had  not  been  so  successful,  a  very  handsome  legacy. 

"  Another  incident  may  be  mentioned.  The  owners  of 
the  copyright  of  "Webster's  Royal  Octavo  Dictionary  had 
given  written  permission  to  a  publishing  firm  in  New  York 
to  issue  certain  smaller  Dictionaries  with  the  name  of  Webster 
attached  to  them.  These  publishers  began  the  preparation 
of  an  edition  of  the  Dictionary  which  the  copyright  owners 
considered  likely  to  compete  with  the  Eoyal  Octavo  edition. 
This,  in  their  opinion,  was  not  permitted  by  the  contract 
held  by  the  New  York  publishers.  A  suit  was  brought 
against  these  publishers,  but  the  judge,  before  whom  it  came 
very  wisely  said  that  this  was  a  matter  about  which  he  and 
his  fellow  justices  had  no  knowledge,  and  therefore  decided 
that  two  publishers  who  knew  the  use  and  custom  of  the 
trade,  and  a  lawyer  who  understood  the  legal  points,  should 
act  as  arbitrators  in  the  case.  For  this  purpose  the  judge 
chose  Mr.  J.  H.  Butler,  of  Northampton,  Mass.,  and  my 
brother  Eobert,  as  the  two  publishers,  and  the  Hon.  W.  M. 
Evarts,  now  representing  the  State  of  New  York  in  the 
United  States  Senate,  as  the  lawyer.  The  meetings  were 
held  in  the  Everett  House,  Seventeenth  Street,  New  York. 

"  The  discussion  turned  chiefly  on  the  meaning  of  two 
words,  size  and  intermediate.  The  owners  of  the  copyright 
contending  that  size  necessarily  includes  the  idea  of  shape, 
used  the  following  homely  illustration  to  support  this  view  : 


PEACEMAKING.  91 

'  Suppose  you  went  to  a  shoemaker  and  ordered  a  pair  of  boots 
made  to  measure.  If  when  they  came  home  they  proved  to 
be  half  an  inch  too  long  and  a  quarter  of  an  inch  too  narrow, 
would  it  be  any  satisfaction  to  you  should  the  shoemaker 
say  that  the  boots,  if  filled  with  water,  would  hold  exactly  the 
same  quantity  as  if  they  had  been  made  as  they  were  ordered  1 
Certainly  not,  for  size  includes  shape  as  well.'  In  regard  to 
the  word  intermediate  the  question  was  whether  it  was  any- 
where between  two  points,  or  near  the  middle.  The  owners 
of  the  copyright  affirmed  the  latter.  One  of  the  ablest  advo- 
cates on  the  side  of  the  copyright  owners  was  that  grand  old 
man,  the  late  Chauncey  Goodrich,  of  Yale  College,  and  he 
came  armed  with  a  perfect  legion  of  authorities.  The  meet- 
ings were  continued  for  nearly  a  week,  and  resulted  in  a  ver- 
dict in  favor  of  the  owners  of  the  copyright. 

"One  thing  I  used  greatly  to  admire  in  him  was  the 
patience  with  which  he  listened  to  those  who  came  to  him 
for  money.  He  would  politely  seat  them,  and  then  hear 
their  story.  Many  a  disheartened  advocate  of  a  good  cause 
gathered  fresh  courage  after  an  interview  with  him,  and  felt 
gratitude  for  the  contribution  that  almost  invariably  followed. 
Sometimes  one  after  another  of  these  needy  applicants  would 
appear  on  the  same  morning,  and  yet  neither  his  patience 
nor  his  gifts  ever  seemed  to  fail." 

He  often  told  a  story  of  two  partners  in  business  with 
whom  he  was  well  acquainted.  They  quarrelled,  and 
dissolved  partnership.  One  of  them  was  telling  Mr. 
Carter  of  the  circumstances,  and  he  said  to  him  :  "  Mr. 
B.,  you  profess  to  be  a  Christian  man.  It  is  your  duty 
to  live  peaceably,  and  rather  to  suffer  wrong  than  quarrel. 
Cannot  you  arrange  this  matter  with  Mr.  D.  ? "  Mr.  B. 
said  he  was  willing  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  effect  a  rec- 
onciliation, or  a  separation  on  friendly  terms.  He  felt 
that  it  was  not  best  for  him  to  talk  with  his  partner 
any  more  on  the  subject,  but  he  asked  Mr.  Carter  if  he 


92  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

would  not  go  to  his  partner  and  offer  him  any  terms 
that  Mr.  Carter  thought  right  and  reasonable.  He  went 
and  was  very  kindly  received,  and  the  two  talked  over 
the  matter  pleasantly  for  a  time,  and  there  seemed  good 
prospect  of  the  affair  being  amicably  settled,  when  sud- 
denly Mr.  D.  started  to  his  feet,  exclaiming,  "You 
don't  know  my  partner,  ^Ir.  Carter.  He  is  a  bad  man, 
and  I  would  not  settle  this  matter  if  you  offered  me 
fifty  thousand  dollars."  "  I  have  no  fifty  thousand  to 
offer."  And  the  interview  ended.  Years  passed,  and 
one  day  Mr.  D.  entered  Mr.  Carter's  store,  and  sought  a 
private  conversation  with  him.  He  told  him  that  he 
felt  himself  to  be  a  changed  man,  that  he  realized  the 
worldliness  of  all  his  former  life,  and  that  the  night 
before  he  had  gone  up  to  the  altar  of  the  Methodist 
Church  which  he  attended,  and  that  he  believed  himself 
converted.  "I  came  to  you  this  morning,  because  I 
knew  how  glad  you  would  be."  Mr.  Carter  rejoiced 
with  him,  and  then  said :  "  It  is  your  duty  to  be  recon- 
ciled to  your  brother.  You  remember  on  what  terms 
you  parted  with  ]\Ir.  B.  "Will  you  not  seek  reconcilia- 
tion with  him  ? "  "  That  is  all  settled.  I  went  to  see 
him  after  church  last  night.  He  came  down  greatly 
surprised  to  hear  that  I  was  there.  I  asked  his  forgive- 
ness, and  we  fell  into  each  other's  arms,  and  shed  tears 
together.  All  that  breach  is  healed."  "  Since  you 
parted,"  ]Mr.  Carter  said,  "  you  have  been  prosperous, 
while  your  old  partner  has  been  unsuccessful.  Could 
you  not  find  him  some  opening  in  business  ?  "  "I  will 
do  my  best  to  find  him  one." 

Mr.  Carter  had  many  such  incidents  in  his  inter- 
course with  his  compeers  in  business.  As  he  went 
he  preached,  sometimes  audibly,  but  always  by  his  life. 
A  friend  writes  of  him  :  — 


VISITING  THE  SICK.  93 

"A  Western  publisher  said  to  me  one  day,  '  I  don't  pro- 
fess to  be  a  Christian  myself,  and  I  don't  believe  much  in 
many  of  those  who  do ;  but  I  know  one  thing,  if  there  is  a 
consistent  man  in  the  publishing  trade,  Robert  Carter  is 
that  man.'  '  Has  he  been  talking  to  you  about  religion  1 ' 
*  No,  he  never  said  a  word  to  me  directly  about  religion  in 
all  my  intercourse  with  him  ;  but  the  atmosphere  in  which 
he  moved  was  so  pure  and  holy,  I  could  not  help  looking 
to  see  if  there  was  not  a  halo  around  his  face.  His  business 
intercourse  with  his  customers  impressed  them  with  his  in- 
tegrity and  conscientiousness,  and  they  implicitly  trusted 
his  every  word.  Robert  Carter  is  a  true,  honest  good  man  ; 
there  is  no  cant,  no  deception  nor  trickery,  about  him.'  " 

Mr.  Carter  himself  writes  as  follows  :  — 
"Among  the  booksellers  with  whom  I  had  dealings 
in  my  early  years,  there  was  one  from  whom  I  pur- 
chased much  of  the  material  which  I  wanted.  When 
I  entered  his  store,  he  usually  came  to  me,  and  we 
had  a  pleasant  chat.  He  was  kind  and  friendly, 
but  his  views  were  in  some  regards  so  different  from 
mine  that  I  have  often  wondered  M-hy  he  was  so 
ready  to  talk  with  me.  One  day  when  I  called,  his 
son  said  to  me,  '  My  father  is  very  sick ;  I  wish  you 
could  see  him.'  He  had  been  taken  ill  in  the  country 
at  the  house  of  his  daughter,  and  I  thought  I  could  not 
go  to  him.  A  little  later,  I  was  informed  that  he  had 
returned  home  rather  better,  and  would  like  to  see  me. 
I  immediately  went  to  his  house,  and  found  him  much 
better  than  I  feared.  He  received  me  very  cordially, 
told  me  he  had  retired  from  business,  had  made  his 
will,  and  was  now  free  from  earthly  cares.  I  expressed 
my  satisfaction  at  this,  and  hoped  he  might  have  a 
peaceful  old  age  after  a  very  active  life.  '  But,'  said  T, 
'  will  you  allow  me  to  ask  you  a  question  ? '     '  Yes,  sir. 


94  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

a  thousand,  if  you  like.'  '  Then,'  said  I,  '  ever  since  I 
knew  you,  you  were  laying  plans  for  future  work.  I 
would  like  to  know  what  arrangements  you  have  made 
for  that  eternal  world  to  which  we  are  all  hastening.' 
'  None  at  all,'  said  he.  '  Is  this  wise  ?  Can  you  leave 
the  vast  concerns  of  eternity  unsettled  ? '  *  No,  sir,' 
said  he,  '  it  is  madness.'  '  Then,'  said  I,  '  there  is  yet 
time.  He  is  able  to  save  to  the  uttermost.  The  voice  is 
still  heard,  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest.'  We  had  a  very  tender 
interview.  When  I  left  him,  his  dear  wife  accompa- 
nied me  to  the  door,  and  said,  '  I  never  saw  my  husband 
so  melted  before.'  The  next  day  his  daughter  came  to 
my  store  in  his  carriage,  and  asked  me  to  ride  up  with  her 
and  see  her  father.  '  He  has  been  ill  at  ease  since  you 
left  him.'  I  found  him  in  great  distress.  '  What  can  I 
do  ?  I  have  received  blessing  after  blessing,  and  I  never 
thanked  God  for  them.  Is  there  yet  hope  for  me  ? ' 
I  could  only  point  to  the  Lamb  of  God,  that  taketh 
away  the  sin  of  the  world.  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  thou  shalt  be  saved.  I  dwelt  especially  on 
the  word  now.  '  Yes,'  said  he,  '  if  that  applies  to  any,  it 
does  to  me.  I  cannot  be  long  here.'  '  This  moment  let 
us  ask,  and  He  will  hear.'  With  many  tears,  we  asked 
—  oh  how  earnestly  !  —  for  pardon,  for  a  broken  heart, 
for  a  right  spirit,  for  peace  with  God  through  faith  in 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Day  after  day  I  visited  him 
for  several  months,  and  what  a  marvellous  change  came 
over  him.  His  loathing  of  sin,  his  adoration  of  the  dear 
Eedeemer  who  washed  him  in  His  precious  blood,  his 
distrust  of  himself,  and  his  new-born  faith  in  the  atone- 
ment, were  most  marked.  He  had  attended  church  dur- 
ing a  long  life,  but  he  said  his  mind  was  elsewhere.  My 
language  to  him  was  almost  entirely  in  the  words  of 


VISITING  THE  SICK.  95 

Scripture.  The  Holy  Spirit  makes  the  word  quick  and 
powerful  for  the  conviction  and  conversion  of  sinners." 

All  his  life  through  Mr.  Carter  was  an  acceptable 
visitor  at  the  bedsides  of  the  sick  and  dying.  He  was 
an  invaluable  pastor's  assistant,  unwearied  in  his  lov- 
ing ministrations,  ever  tender  and  sympathetic.  His 
counsels,  and  especially  his  prayers,  were  most  appro- 
priate, and  many  a  time  he  was  roused  in  the  night 
to  help  some  dying  person  in  his  passage  through  the 
valley  of  the  shadow  of  death,  sitting  beside  him,  and 
whispering  words  of  faith  and  hope  until  the  ears  were 
closed  to  every  earthly  sound,  and  then  turning  to  the 
mourning  friends  with  words  of  heavenly  comfort.  For 
weeks  afterwards,  his  visits  would  be  frequent  and  wel- 
come. There  are  hundreds  of  people  now  living  in 
whose  minds  he  is  associated  with  their  hours  of  deep- 
est distress,  as  the  faithful  and  sympathizing  and  sus- 
taining friend  and  counsellor.  Many  who  had  refused 
to  listen  to  him  in  their  hours  of  prosperity,  when  he 
besought  them  to  make  their  peace  with  God,  would 
remember  him  when  days  of  sorrow  came,  and  send 
for  one  who  was  so  ready  to  come  at  their  first  call. 
Of  him  the  Master  will  surely  say,  "  I  was  sick,  and  ye 
visited  me."  He  visited  rich  and  poor  alike,  was  often 
in  stately  as  well  as  squalid  homes.  In  his  house  there 
were  many  tokens  of  gratitude  and  affection,  sent  by  the 
sick  whom  he  had  comforted ;  but  more  often  it  was  in 
the  homes  of  poverty  that  he  was  found,  and  he  min- 
istered to  the  physical  as  well  as  to  the  spiritual  wants 
of  the  needy. 

For  the  last  thirty  years  of  his  life  he  seldom  went 
to  his  place  of  business  in  the  afternoon,  giving  only 
the  morning  hours  to  work  of  that  kind.  His  after- 
noons were  largely  spent  in  Christian  work,  many  of 


96  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

them  on  important  committees  ;  but  on  the  majority  of 
them  he  and  his  wife  would  go  out  together  to  visit  the 
poor,  the  sick,  and  the  afflicted.  When  the  ear  heard 
them,  then  it  blessed  them ;  when  the  eye  saw  them,  it 
bare  witness  to  them ;  the  blessing  of  him  that  was 
ready  to  perish  came  upon  them,  and  they  caused  the 
widow's  heart  to  sing  for  joy ;  the  cause  that  they  knew 
not,  they  searched  out.  The  Psalmist's  blessing  on  him 
that  considereth  the  poor  came  upon  them. 

The  following  narrative  from  his  own  pen  may  find  a 
place  here :  — 

"  I  was  standing  by  my  desk  after  the  opening  ser- 
vices of  the  Sabbath  School  were  over,  when  the  door 
opened  and  a  little  girl  looked  in,  as  if  afraid  to  en- 
ter. I  went  up  to  her  and  asked  if  she  wished  to 
attend  the  school,  to  which  she  replied,  '  Yes.'  '  What 
is  your  name  ? '  '  Kate.'  On  this,  one  of  the  teachers 
came  up  and  said,  '  I  want  Kate  in  my  class.'  '  Very 
well,'  said  I,  '  she  may  go.'  This  was  to  poor  Kate  a 
new  life.  She  was  the  daughter  of  a  brave  pilot,  whose 
business  it  was  to  conduct  ships  into  the  harbor  of 
New  York.  Kate  was  his  only  child.  One  day  when 
a  fearful  storm  was  raging,  he  offered  his  services  to  go 
out  on  his  dangerous  work.  He  went,  but  never  re- 
turned. His  wife  and  child  looked  out  impatiently  for 
his  return,  but  in  vain.  After  selling  some  of  the  arti- 
cles which  they  thought  they  could  dispense  with,  the 
poor  mother  went  out  and  washed  and  scrubbed  to 
gain  bread  for  herself  and  child.  One  day  she  was 
washing  at  the  house  of  one  of  my  teachers,  when  the 
bell  rung  and  Kate  came  to  see  her  mother.  It  was  a 
wet  day,  and  the  teacher  took  Kate  and  dried  her  by 
the  fire  and  gave  her  something  to  eat.  Her  heart  was 
unaccountably  drawn  to  the  child.     After  a  little  talk 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL.  97 

she  asked  Kate  if  she  would  like  to  come  to  the  Sab- 
bath school.  The  child  looked  to  her  mother.  The 
mother  said,  '  It  is  the  only  day  I  have  her  with  me  ; 
I  cannot  let  her  go.'  After  several  other  visits,  the 
mother  consented  to  let  her  go,  and  so  she  came.  1 
could  see  the  intense  interest  the  child  took  in  her 
lessons.  She  had  attended  the  public  school  during 
the  week,  but  had  received  no  religious  instruction. 
This  was  all  new.  From  her  first  entrance  nothing 
could  keep  her  away  on  the  Sabbath  till  one  day  I 
missed  her.  I  inquired  of  the  teacher  what  was  the 
matter.  She  said,  '  She  must  be  sick.'  I  took  her  ad- 
dress, and  the  next  day  my  wife  went  with  me  to  see 
her.  We  found  her  in  a  rear  building  upstairs.  She 
was  very  sick,  but  her  mother  had  to  leave  her  to  do 
her  work.  After  talking  with  her,  and  prayer,  I  rose 
to  bid  her  good  by.  The  poor  child  looked  so  pale  and 
thin  and  feeble,  that  I  was  deeply  moved.  I  took  out 
a  ten-dollar  bill,  and  handed  it  to  her.  She  burst  into 
tears,  and  said,  '  I  cannot  take  it,  sir  ;  there  are  many 
poorer  than  I.'  '  Yes,'  said  I,  '  but  you  must  take  it. 
You  need  some  delicacies  now,  and  your  mother  will  get 
them  for  you.'  I  little  thought  that  the  mother  had 
been  told,  if  her  rent  were  not  paid  on  the  following 
Friday,  they  would  be  turned  into  the  street.  The  rent 
was  six  dollars  a  month,  and  Kate's  illness  had  run  the 
poor  widow  behind.  Kate  recovered,  and  returned  to 
school.  One  Sabbath  evening  she  read  to  her  mother 
the  old,  old  story  of  the  crucifixion  of  Jesus.  The 
poor  child  burst  into  tears  and  said  :  '  0  mother,  I  am 
so  happy  since  I  learned  that  Jesus  loved  me  and  died 
for  me  !  The  minister  to-day  invited  those  who  loved 
Jesus  to  come  to-morrow  to  his  house  to  converse  with 
him  about  remembering  Him  at  the  approaching  com- 

7 


98  LIFE  OF  ROBEET  CARTER. 

munion.  I  want  to  remember  Him.  Mother,  may  I 
go  ? '  The  mother  consented.  Kate's  testimony  was 
remarkably  clear.  It  was  simply  love  to  Christ  and  a 
desire  to  serve  Him.  The  Blessed  Spirit  had  spoken 
to  her  heart.  Some  time  afterwards  the  dear  child 
was  reading  to  her  mother  a  portion  of  the  Gospels. 
She  looked  tenderly  in  her  mother's  face,  and  said, 
'  Mother,  do  you  love  the  dear  Saviour  ? '  The  mother 
shook  her  head.  '  0  mother,  if  you  knew  how  happy 
I  am  since  I  loved  Him,  you  would  love  Him  too.'  The 
mother  rose  and  entered  a  little  closet  and  shut  the 
door.  Her  groans  pierced  the  poor  child's  heart.  She 
rose  and  tapped  at  the  door,  and  asked,  '  May  I  come 
in  ? '  '  Yes.'  She  went  and  wept  and  talked  with  her, 
and  then  prayed  fervently  that  her  mother  might  be 
made  a  new  creature.  The  prayer  was  answered.  The 
mother  sat  with  Kate  at  the  communion  table,  and  it 
was  a  happy  home,  and  there  was  joy  in  heaven.  Kate 
was  again  taken  sick.  Three  little  nieces  of  mine 
visited  her  regularly.  They  took  various  delicacies  to 
her,  but  they  did  more.  They  could  sing  sweetly,  and 
they  sang  '  Jesus  loves  me,  this  I  know,'  and  '  Jesus  paid 
it  all,  all  the  debt  I  owe.'  '  Ah  ! '  said  the  poor  child, 
'  that  is  my  hymn.  I  owed  a  heavy  debt  and  had  noth- 
ing to  pay  it  with.  How  good  He  is  ! '  In  my  visits  to 
Kate,  I  never  heard  a  murmur  or  a  doubt.  Nothing  but 
faith  and  hope  and  joy.  I  often  blessed  God  for  such 
a  testimony.  Had  I  no  other  fruit  of  my  forty  years' 
labor  in  the  Sabbath  school,  this  alone  was  worth  it  all. 
One  evening  Kate  said  to  her  mother,  '  I  am  going 
home  soon  to  be  with  Jesus.  What  will  you  do  when 
I  am  gone  ? '  'I  shall  stay  here  where  I  shall  have  the 
Sabbath  to  myself.  It  is  a  precious  place,  Kate,  where 
you  and  I  have  found  Jesus.'     '  That  is  just  what  I 


DR.   GRISCOM.  99 

want,  mother.'  The  dear  girl  had  no  anxiety  about 
herself,  but  she  yearned  over  her  mother.  On  Thanks- 
giving morning,  before  the  good  people  of  New  York 
arose  to  give  thanks  for  the  mercies  of  the  preceding 
year,  Kate  went  to  give  thanks  in  the  house  not  made 
with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.  Two  days  later  a 
few  who  knew  her  worth  followed  the  dear  remains  to 
their  last  resting  place.  There  shall  they  remain  till 
the  trump  shall  raise  the  quick  and  dead." 

John  Griscom,  LL.  D.,  Mr.  Carter's  early  and  highly 
valued  friend  and  patron,  died  February  25,  1852.  Dr. 
Griscom  was  widely  known  as  a  learned  and  influential 
member  of  society,  a  professor  of  chemistry,  and  an  able 
contributor  to  the  leading  scientific  journals  of  the  day. 
Mr.  Carter's  love  for  him  never  waned,  but  he  spoke  of 
him  with  the  utmost  gratitude  and  tenderness  to  the 
last  days  of  his  own  life.  In  a  letter  written  shortly 
after  Dr.  Griscom's  death,  he  speaks  w^th  pleasure  of 
his  intimate  acquaintance  "  with  one  who  never  met  me 
without  a  smile  of  complacency,  and  whose  sound  ad- 
vice and  kind  encouragement  were  never  withheld  in 
time  of  need."  Dr.  Griscom  removed  to  Burlington, 
N.  J.,  shortly  after  Mr.  Carter's  arrival  in  New  York, 
but  their  friendship  never  lapsed.  Mr.  Carter  writes 
of  him  :  — 

"  On  his  first  visit  to  my  dwelling,  after  my  marriage, 
he  looked  around  the  parlor,  and  with  unaffected  kind- 
ness addressed  me  ■.  '  Little  didst  thou  think,  a  few  years 
ago,  when  thou  called  on  me,  a  poor  Scotcli  lad,  that 
thou  shouldst  be  so  soon  in  such  comfortable  circum- 
stances.    I  am  glad  to  see  thee  so  happily  situated.' 

"  Some  years  later,  he  again  dined  with  me,  and  spent 
the  evening.  Taking  my  little  boy,  three  years  old,  on 
his  knee,  he  heard  him,  with  evident  pleasure,  repeat  a 


100         LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

number  of  the  Psalms  in  the  old  Scottish  version,  and 
remarked  that,  though  they  had  not  the  smooth  flow 
of  some  later  versions,  they  yet  had  the  merit  of  keep- 
ing close  to  the  original.  He  then  repeated  to  the  child 
Montgomery's  version  of  the  72d  Psalm,  telling  him  that 
he  knew  the  author  well,  and  esteemed  him  highly. 

"  On  my  apologizing  for  certain  forms  which,  as  a 
Presbyterian,  I  observed  in  my  family,  he  earnestly 
replied,  '  Go  on  in  thy  usual  way ;  I  don't  want  thee 
to  change.' 

"  After  I  began  to  publish  books,  he  manifested  a 
warm  interest  in  their  success.  Each  visit  he  made,  he 
questioned  me  regarding  their  sale,  and  often  did  his 
eye  kindle  with  animation,  as  I  related  to  him  the  large 
sale  of  some  of  his  favorite  authors  I  was  often  sur- 
prised by  his  largeness  of  view.  He  did  not  disparage 
books  because  there  were  some  things  in  them  contrary 
to  his  views  of  church  order,  but  would  remark,  '  The 
spirit  of  this  book  is  excellent,  though  there  are  some 
particulars  in  which  I  do  not  agree  with  the  author.' 
In  fact,  few  critiques  upon  our  publications  have  been 
so  highly  valued  as  those  from  his  pen." 

In  Dr.  Griscom's  Autobiography,  after  a  sketch  of 
some  length  of  his  friend  Robert  Carter,  we  find  the  fol- 
lowing words  :  "  I  make  this  statement  as  a  preamble  to 
the  fact  that  he  so  abounds  in  gratitude  for  the  friend- 
ship which  I  was  at  first  induced  to  treat  him  with  as 
to  present  to  me  copies  of  any  work  that  issues  from  his 
press  which  I  have  any  wish  to  read.  I  have  from  this 
source  received  an  accession  to  my  library  of  more  than 
two  hundred  volumes.  I  could  not  do  less  than  com- 
memorate such  disinterested  kindness,  such  an  effusion 
of  gratitude,  at  once  challenging  and  receiving  the 
grateful  emotions  of  my  heart." 


DR.  GRISCOM.  101 

Mr.  Carter  writes  some  years  later  to  John  H.  Gris- 
com,  M.  D.,  son  of  his  old  friend :  — 

"  In  looking  back  to  my  intercourse  with  your  vener- 
able father  during  the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life,  I 
cannot  express  the  feelings  that  oppress  me.  I  was  in- 
troduced to  him  as  a  young  stranger  from  a  distant 
land, —  of  a  different  creed  as  I  then  supposed,  differing 
as  I  believed  in  hopes  and  fears,  in  joys  and  sorrows,  — 
and  yet  there  proved  to  be  a  wondrous  07ieness  and 
resemblance.  When  I  first  knew  him,  our  intercourse 
was  purely  of  a  literary  kind.  Though  I  cannot  say 
that  he  introduced  me  to  Milton,  Cowper,  and  others 
of  our  favorite  poets,  I  can  yet  state  that  he  enhanced 
greatly  the  estimate  I  had  of  their  beauties.  After  sev- 
eral years  of  pleasant  progress,  our  paths  diverged.  He 
went  to  Rhode  Island,  and  I  entered  the  business  world 
here.  When  we  again  met,  our  views  were  greatly 
changed,  and  yet  we  were  more  as  one  than  before. 
The  books  that  meanwhile  had  absorbed  my  attention 
I  found  to  my  great  joy  were  equally  attractive  to  him. 
Chalmers,  Jay,  McCosh,  McCheyne,  Stevenson,  and 
others  were  his  daily  companions.  He  told  me  that  he 
had  perused  Chalmers  on  the  Eomans  with  most  care- 
ful attention,  and  that  he  did  not  find  a  single  paragraph 
which  was  not  supported  by  Scripture.  In  this  book  he 
found  distinct  statements  regarding  the  total  depravity 
of  man,  and  his  consequent  ruin ;  the  interposition  of 
the  blessed  Saviour  for  his  recovery  ;  his  quickening  and 
renewal  by  the  Eternal  Spirit,  and  the  glorious  work  of 
sanctification  begun,  carried  on,  and  perfected  through 
the  same  holy  agency  ;  and  he  was  ready  to  set  his  seal 
to  the  truth  of  them  all.  His  views  of  spiritual  truth 
grew  brighter  and  more  cheerful  as  he  approached  the 
end  of  his  peaceful  career.     The  precious  Saviour,  in  his 


102         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

incarnation,  his  sufferings,  his  death,  his  resurrection 
and  ascension,  was  the  theme  of  his  daily  study.  The 
Lord  our  Shepherd,  and  Christ  on  the  cross,  proved  truly 
refreshing  to  his  yearning  spirit. 

"  There  were  some  peculiar  views  in  which,  though  I 
did  not  agree  with  him,  he  yet  showed  the  accuracy 
with  which  he  examined  truth.  For  example,  he  said 
to  me,  I  do  not  like  the  phrase  '  the  word  of  God,'  as  ap- 
plied to  the  Scriptures.  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Word, — 
we  should  not  apply  the  term  to  aught  else. 

"  I  shall  not  easily  forget  the  last  interview  I  had 
with  him.  He  was  blind  and  feeble,  but  cheerful  and 
even  joyous.  I  reached  his  pleasant  little  home  in  Bur- 
lington about  six  o'clock  P.  M.  He  gave  me  a  most  cor- 
dial welcome,  told  me  what  books  his  daughter  had 
been  reading  aloud,  and  how  refreshing  they  had  been 
to  him  ,  ascended  from  these  little  rills  to  the  pure, 
clear,  ever-gushing  fountain, —  the  Book  of  books  ;  went 
back  to  the  days  of  other  years,  and  described  the  efforts 
of  great  and  good  men  to  put  in  circulation  the  Holy 
Scriptures  ;  dilated  upon  the  formation  of  the  Ameri- 
can Bible  Society,  at  the  first  meeting  of  which  he  was 
present,  and  traced  down  the  blessings  that  flowed  from 
this  noble  institution  throughout  this  broad  land. 

"  I  had  often  enjoyed  sweet  converse  with  him,  but 
never  had  I  communed  so  closely  with  the  inner  man. 
It  seemed  quite  on  the  verge  of  heaven.  I  dare  not 
say  more.     I  tread  on  sacred  ground." 

This  last  interview  with  his  aged  friend  was  one  on 
which  Mr.  Carter  always  loved  to  dwell.  He  had  stopped 
at  Burlington  unexpectedly  on  his  way  home  from  a 
meeting  of  the  General  Assembly,  Mrs.  Griscom  ush- 
ered him  into  her  husband's  study,  where  he  sat  in  blind- 
ness, with  the  words,  "  Thee  canst  not  think  who  has 


i5r.  griscom.  103 

come  to  see  thee,  John.  It  is  a  friend  whom  thee  greatly 
values."  "  Prom  New  York  or  Philadelphia  ? "  "  From 
New  York."  "  Is  it  Robert  Carter  ? '  "It  is."  The 
old  man  rose  from  his  chair  and  held  out  his  arms  for 
an  embrace,  and  then  followed  the  interview  which 
Mr.  Carter  describes  in  his  letter.  At  bedtime  the  old 
gentleman  proposed  that  they  should  have  family  wor- 
ship together  in  Mr.  Carter's  usual  form  before  they 
separated,  and  accordingly  Mr.  Carter  read  the  Bible 
and  knelt  in  prayer,  while  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Griscom  kept 
their  seats,  as  it  was  contrary  to  their  custom  to  kneel. 
Early  in  the  morning  there  came  a  knock  at  Mr.  Carter's 
door,  and  Dr.  Griscom's  voice  said,  "  I  am  not  allowed 
to  get  up  in  the  morning  so  early,  but  I  wish  thee  would 
come  to  my  room  as  soon  as  thee  is  dressed,  that  we  may 
talk  again."  Mr.  Carter  was  soon  beside  his  friend's 
bed,  and  he  said  to  him:  "I  lie  awake  much  in  the  night, 
and  last  night  I  was  thinking  about  thy  prayer.  I  am 
convinced  that  we  lose  much  in  our  Society  by  not 
having  audible  prayer,  family  worship,  and  blessing  at 
table.  If  I  were  to  begin  life  over  again,  I  would  do 
differently." 

They  soon  after  parted,  never  to  meet  again  on  earth, 
but  one  of  the  joys  of  eternity  to  them  both  will  be  in 
each  other's  society. 

Their  correspondence  had  been  constant.  Even  af- 
ter the  Doctor  lost  his  sight,  he  wrote  frequently,  his 
daughter  placing  his  pen  at  the  beginning  of  each  line, 
and  he  would  then  write  on  till  he  came  to  the  edge  of 
the  paper.  He  wrote  once,  "  Thee  seest  what  a  long 
letter  I  have  written  thee,  and  yet  I  have  not  seen  a 
single  word  of  it." 

A  testimony  similar  to  Dr.  Griscom's  to  the  power  of 
Mr.  Carter's  family  prayers  was  given  by  a  Unitarian 


104         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

friend  some  years  after.  This  gentleman  met  Mr. 
Carter  at  a  watering  place,  and  became  well  acquainted 
with  him.  The  following  winter  he  came  to  New  York 
to  attend  a  convention  of  the  Unitarian  Church,  and 
stayed  with  Mr.  Carter  for  about  a  week.  He  was  al- 
ways present  at  family  prayers,  but  did  not  kneel,  as  he 
had  not  been  accustomed  to  such  a  service.  When  he 
was  bidding  farewell  he  said  to  his  host :  "I  have  been 
much  interested  in  your  custom  of  family  prayer,  and 
it  seems  to  me  an  invaluable  one.  I  mean  to  follow 
the  practice  myself  when  I  go  home,  and  I  shall  try  to 
introduce  it  into  our  denomination  as  far  as  I  am 
able." 

The  following  allusion  to  his  prayers  appeared  in  the 
Presbyterian  of  January  8,  1890,  just  after  his  death. 

"  There  are  a  great  many  persons  in  this  laud  and  other 
lands  who  know  well  the  name  of  the  late  Robert  Carter. 
They  found  it  imprinted,  perhaps,  on  the  title  page  of  some 
of  the  volumes  most  precious  to  them,  —  of  the  books  which 
lie  near  them  in  sickness,  or  in  hours  of  secret  devotion. 
Others  came  to  know  this  name  by  its  association  with  some 
beneficent  deed,  done  quietly  and  revealed  unto  them  acci- 
dentally. But  there  are  others,  and  of  these  many  are 
ministers  and  elders  in  the  churches,  who  will  forever  asso- 
ciate the  name  of  this  well  beloved  man  with  the  prayers 
which  they  heard  him  utter.  He  was  often  a  member  of 
the  General  Assembly  ;  he  was  unfailing  in  his  presence  at 
the  devotional  meetings  of  the  Assembly,  and  by  those  who 
knew  his  power  he  was  often  called  upon  to  lead  these  meet- 
ings in  prayer.  Always  excellent,  these  prayers  at  times 
were  wonderful.  There  was  no  vrandering,  no  hesitation, 
no  lack  of  well  ordered  words.  Then  there  was  such  a  large 
comprehension  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  and  of  its  truths  as 
wrought  into  the  personal  experience  of  the  man  ;  while 
through  all  there  ran  a  tide  of  emotion  which  touched  all 


HIS  PRAYERS.  105 

hearts  around  him,  as  they  discerned  the  grace  of  God  in 
him,  and  the  quickening  power  of  the  love  of  Christ  in  his 
soul.     No  liturgy  we  ever  heard  could  compare  with  it." 

His  prayers  were  eminently  Scriptural,  and  he  made 
the  Word  of  God  his  study  and  delight.  He  was  to  the 
close  of  his  life  the  first  of  the  family  in  the  breakfast- 
room,  and  there  he  would  sit  reading  the  Bible  until 
all  were  assembled,  and  he  could  begin  family  prayers. 
He  read  the  Bible  through  every  nine  months,  and  the 
copy  of  the  Scriptures  in  which  his  marks  are  pre- 
served is  treasured  by  his  children. 


CHAPTER     V. 

MR.  SAMUEL  THOMSON,  Mr.  Carter's  father-in- 
law,  died  at  his  country  residence  on  the  Hudson, 
June  10,  1850,  leaving  behind  him  an  honored  name 
and  a  place  in  many  hearts  which  never  could  be  filled. 
He  was  possessed  of  remarkable  physical  beauty,  a 
presence  which  made  an  impression  wherever  he  went. 
He  was  a  man  of  incorruptible  integrity  and  large 
benevolence,  his  tender  heart  making  him  ever  the 
friend  of  the  widow  and  the  fatherless.  He  had  been 
for  many  years  an  elder  in  the  Scotch  Presbyterian 
Church  in  New  York.  Some  ten  or  fifteen  years  before 
his  death,  he  had  made  himself  a  beautiful  country 
home  on  the  northern  end  of  New  York  Island,  at  a 
place  which  is  now  known  as  Inwood.  When  he  took 
up  his  residence  there,  there  was  no  church  within  sev- 
eral miles,  and  he  used  to  drive  with  his  family  to 
church  at  West  Farms.  Many  of  the  people  in  the 
neighborhood  were  utterly  irreligious,  and  as  the  family 
drove  to  church  they  could  see  the  farmers  at  work  in 
their  fields.  By  and  by  they  began  to  be  ashamed  of 
their  Sunday  work,  and  would  run  and  hide  themselves 
as  they  saw  the  good  man's  carriage  approaching.  Mr. 
Thomson  cared  for  their  souls,  and  lost  no  time  in 
building  on  his  own  grounds  a  pretty  little  church,  of 
which  he  was  the  first  ruling  elder,  and  for  many  years 
the  main  support.     This  church,  happy  and  prosperous, 


THE   TWO   MOTHERS.  107 

has  been  ever  since  his  best  monument.  On  its  walls 
a  tablet  erected  by  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  congre- 
gation records  his  virtues  and  his  liberality. 

In  1853,  Mr.  Carter's  mother-in-law,  Mrs.  Thomson, 
left  her  beautiful  home  upon  the  Hudson,  where  the 
cares  of  her  hospitable  mansion  were  growing  heavy 
for  her  increasing  years,  and  came  to  live  with  her 
daughter  in  New  York.  Her  presence  in  Mr.  Car- 
ter's family  was  a  constant  benediction.  She  was  as  a 
second  mother  to  his  children,  already  so  fully  blessed 
in  their  own  mother.  Her  beautiful,  unselfish  life  left 
on  them  an  impress  never  to  be  forgotten.  Perhaps 
the  two  things  most  strongly  associated  in  their  minds 
with  her  were  the  Bible  which  was  her  constant  read- 
ing, and  the  needle  with  which  her  ever  active  and 
skilful  fingers  were  so  steadily  employed.  She  was  a 
veritable  Dorcas  in  preparing  "  coats  and  garments " 
for  the  poor,  Never  did  fingers  fly  faster  than  hers, 
and  never  were  stitches  more  beautifully  set.  Such 
was  the  loving  kindness  of  her  nature  that  only 
strangers  thought  of  calling  her  Mrs.  Thomson,  while 
Auntie  Thomson  was  a  familiar  name  in  many  homes. 
On  her  lips  was  the  law  of  kindness,  and  indeed  all 
the  description  of  the  virtuous  woman  of  Proverbs 
might  be  applied  to  her.  Beecher  says  that  no  home 
is  complete  without  the  baby's  cradle  and  the  grand- 
mother's rocking-chair,  and  certainly  the  corner  that 
held  that  capacious  rocker  with  its  venerable  occupant 
was  a  blessed  feature  in  Mr.  Carter's  home.  He  and 
his  mother-in-law  loved  each  other  as  own  mother  and 
son.  For  six  weeks  of  every  autumn  his  own  mother 
came  from  Saratoga  County  to  occupy  another  rocking- 
chair  in  the  family  room,  and  the  two  silver-haired  old 
ladies  made  a  beautiful  picture  as  they  sat  together. 


108  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

Old  Mrs.  Carter  was  a  striking  and  original  charac- 
ter. Her  speech  was  seasoned  with  plenty  of  Attic  salt, 
as  when  she  remarked  of  some  one  who  had  risen  from 
poverty  to  affluence  and  was  spoiled  by  the  rise,  "  Ah  ! 
when  soles  get  to  be  upper  leathers  they  're  awfu'  stiff." 
Her  son  Robert  was  idolized  by  her,  and  woe  be  to  him 
who  spoke  slightingly  of  her  treasure.  It  is  related 
that  when  her  son  wrote  to  her,  on  his  first  coming  to 
America,  that  some  one  had  said  that  his  being  a  for- 
eigner might  make  it  harder  for  him  to  get  a  position, 
"  Hech,  sirs  ■ "  said  she,  "  they  have  a  guid  face  to  ca'  my 
son  a  foreigner."  When  her  son  was  at  Peebles,  he  saw 
in  the  Bible  of  one  of  his  pupils  some  verses  which 
pleased  him  so  much  that  he  copied  them  and  sent 
them  to  his  mother.  They  appealed  to  her  mother 
feeling,  and  to  her  latest  days  she  loved  to  repeat  them, 
in  her  rich  expressive  voice,  and  with  her  beautiful 
Scottish  accent :  — 

LINES  BY   A    MOTHER   IN  HER  SON'S  BIBLE. 

Remember,  love,  who  gave  thee  this, 

When  other  days  shall  come,  — 
When  she  who  had  thy  earliest  kiss 

Sleeps  in  her  narrow  home  : 
Remember  't  was  a  mother  gave 
The  gift  to  one  she  *d  die  to  save- 
That  mother  sought  a  pledge  of  love, 

The  holiest  for  her  son, 
And  from  the  gift  of  God  above 

She  chose  a  goodly  one  : 
She  chose  for  her  beloved  boy 
The  Source  of  life  and  light  and  joy,  — 

And  bade  him  keep  the  gift,  that  when 

The  parting  hour  should  come 
They  might  have  hope  to  meet  again 

In  an  eternal  home  , 


HIS  MOTHER.  109 

She  said  his  faith  in  it  should  be 
Sweet  incense  to  her  memory. 

And  shoukl  the  scoffer  in  his  pride 

Laugh  that  fond  faith  to  scorn, 
And  bid  him  cast  that  gift  aside 

That  he  from  youth  had  borne, 
She  bade  him  pause  and  ask  his  breast 
If  he  or  she  had  loved  him  best. 

A  parent's  blessing  on  her  son 

Goes  with  this  holy  thing  ; 
The  love  that  would  retain  the  one 

Must  to  the  other  cling  ; 
Remember  't  is  no  idle  toy, 
A  mother  s  gift! —  remember,  boy  I 

She  was  a  woman  of  unusual  intelligence,  and  a  great 
reader ;  in  fact,  for  many  years  she  did  little  but  read, 
as  she  lived  with  one  or  other  of  her  children,  and  had 
no  household  cares.  In  addition  to  her  long  sojourn 
in  New  York  every  fall,  her  son  always  visited  his 
mother  in  the  summer,  and  his  thoughtful  care  made 
every  provision  for  her  comfort. 

After  her  husband's  death,  old  Mrs.  Carter  always 
led  the  family  devotions  herself,  and  conducted  them 
with  great  unction  and  propriety,  On  one  occasion  the 
son  of  an  old  friend  came  out  from  Scotland,  and  went 
to  her  house  for  a  visit.  When  night  came,  she,  sup- 
posing that  he  was  a  Christian,  handed  him  the  Bible, 
and  asked  him  to  lead  the  family  prayers,  but  he  was 
obliged  to  say,  "  I  cannot  do  it."  She  took  the  Bible 
herself  and  read  a  chapter,  then  one  of  the  old  Scottish 
Psalms  was  sung,  and  all  knelt  in  prayer.  She  prayed 
earnestly  for  her  guest,  and  he  was  much  impressed 
with  the  whole  service.  He  saw  the  contrast  between 
his  twenty-five  years  of  prayerless  life  and  the  earnest, 
faithful  Christianity  of  this  old  lady,  and  that  prayer 


110         LIFE  OF  EGBERT  CARTER. 

was  used  to  bring  him  to  Christ.  For  many  years  he 
was  an  elder  in  a  church  in  a  Western  city. 

Mr.  Carter's  home  life  was  very  beautiful.  He  and 
his  wife  were  always  married  lovers,  and  entirely  one 
in  all  their  thoughts  and  aims  and  plans.  In  training 
their  children,  the  two  prominent  ideas  were  love  and 
obedience.  He  spoke  in  the  last  summer  of  his  life  of 
the  remarkable  gift  of  his  wife  in  the  training  of  chil- 
dren. Her  will  was  law  to  them.  Though  her  voice 
was  never  raised  above  its  ordinary  sweet  and  gentle 
utterance,  they  knew  that  its  commands  must  be  obeyed. 
Probably  none  of  them  remember  being  punished,  be- 
cause any  discipline  of  that  kind  was  gotten  over  in 
their  very  earliest  years ;  but  they  had  a  very  clear  idea 
that  any  infringement  of  her  commands  would  by 
no  means  escape  chastisement.  That  knowledge  was 
enough,  and  extreme  measures  did  not  need  to  be  re- 
sorted to.  She  was  a  born  teacher,  though  she  never 
exercised  her  talents  on  any  but  her  own  children  and 
grandchildren.  Her  children  all  learned  to  read  almost 
as  they  learned  to  talk,  so  easy  was  the  effort  made  to 
them,  so  carefully  was  their  interest  stimulated.  Just 
a  few  minutes  was  given  to  the  task  each  morning,  and 
so  pleasant  was  the  exercise  that  the  little  ones  would 
bring  the  book  of  their  own  accord  and  take  the  lesson 
as  if  it  were  a  game.  They  all  learned  to  read  at  four, 
and  after  that  there  were  no  more  questionings,  "  What 
shall  I  do  ? "  It  was  a  book -loving  and  book-supplied 
home,  and  the  children  took  to  it  like  ducks  to  water. 
After  they  learned  to  read,  little  technical  instruction 
was  given  until  they  went  regularly  to  school,  which 
was  sometimes  not  until  they  were  eleven  years  old. 

Mr.  Carter  had  a  great  idea  of  travel  as  a  means  of 
education,  and  they  were  taken  to  Europe  repeatedly, 


LOVE  OF  TRAVEL.  Ill 

and  every  summer  had  some  trip,  —  to  Niagara  or  the 
White  Mountains  or  the  Thousand  Isles.^  When  they 
were  little,  three  or  four  months  of  every  year  was  spent 
in  the  country,  Mr.  Carter  taking  a  house  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  city,  from  which  he  could  go  to  busi- 
ness every  day.  He  was  very  fond  of  little  excursions, 
and  in  the  spring  and  fall  afternoons  would  take  his 
family  to  Hoboken,  or  Staten  Island,  or  High  Bridge,  or 
some  other  rural  neighborhood.  After  Central  Park  was 
made,  he  was  a  constant  visitor  there,  and  his  friends 
would  laughingly  ask  him  if  he  was  a  Park  Commis- 
sioner. Both  parents  made  companions  of  their  children 
to  an  unusual  degree.  The  father  would  accompany 
them  to  the  schoolhouse  door  on  his  way  to  business, 
and  they  would  go  down  to  his  store  in  the  afternoon  for 
the  pleasure  of  walking  home  with  him,  and  these  walks 
were  by  no  means  silent.  His  daughter  remembers  only 
one  occasion  on  which  he  did  not  respond  to  her  childish 
chatter,  and  that  was  one  morning  on  the  way  to  school, 
during  the  business  crisis  in  1857.  He  said,  "I  can't 
talk  to  you  this  morning ;  I  have  something  very  im- 
portant to  think  about."  The  occurrence  was  so  unpre- 
cedented as  to  fill  her  with  amazement,  and  remained 
in  her  mind  as  something  very  puzzling  until,  in  after 

1  He  often  told  an  incident  of  a  trip  to  the  White  Mountains  in 
18.')2.  He  was  travelling  with  a  party  of  friends,  and  stopped  over 
night  at  St.  Johnsbury,  Vermont.  As  he  sat  on  the  hotel  porch, 
he  noticed  that  the  villagers  were  making  their  way  along  the  street 
towards  the  church.  He  asked  the  landlord  what  was  going  on,  and 
was  told,  "0,  just  the  weekly  prayer  meeting."  Of  course  he  must 
go,  and  a  very  pleasant  gathering  it  was.  Stopping  after  service  to 
speak  to  the  minister,  he  was  introduced  to  Governor  Fairbanks,  an 
officer  of  the  church.  Mr.  Carter  remarked  on  the  large  attendance  at 
an  ordinary  weekly  prayer  meeting.  "I  think,"  said  the  Governor, 
"  every  member  of  our  church  was  present  to-night."  "  No,"  said  the 
minister,  "  there  was  one  absent.     Mrs.  B is  ill. 


112  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

years,  she  solved  the  mystery  by  concluding  that  the 
failure  of  some  business  friend  might  have  caused  him 
distress.  As  he  owed  no  man  anything,  these  periods 
of  financial  depression  gave  him  little  personal  uneasi- 
ness. It  was  a  great  benefit  to  his  children  to  have  his 
well-stored  mind  and  large  experience  placed  so  con- 
stantly at  their  disposal,  and  as  they  grew  older  and 
came  to  maturity  he  conversed  with  them  on  terms  of 
equality,  which  were  often  surprising  to  themselves. 
He  enjoyed  the  intercourse  as  much  as  they  did. 

The  evening  hours  of  the  family  were  delightful. 
The  parents  gave  themselves  up  to  the  children.  The 
mother  was  very  fond  of  "  blind  man's  holiday,"  as  she 
called  the  interval  between  daylight  and  dark ;  and  as 
the  twilight  came  on,  books  and  work  were  laid  aside, 
and  by  the  light  of  the  open  fire  she  took  part  with 
her  little  ones  in  romping  games,  until  the  father  came 
in  to  the  cheerful  evening  meal.  Then  all  joined  in 
play  together  until  the  little  ones  were  sent  to  bed,  and 
then  those  who  were  in  school  went  over  with  their 
father  the  lessons  which  had  been  already  carefully 
prepared.  They  were  not  allowed  to  ask  for  help  until 
they  had  done  their  very  best  by  themselves,  and  even 
then  the  help  given  was  only  by  suggesting,  not  by 
showing,  the  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  It  was  a  rare 
thing  for  any  of  his  children  to  take  to  school  or  col- 
lege a  lesson  in  Latin  or  Greek  which  had  not  first  been 
gone  over  with  him,  and  this  was  kept  up  till  his  sons 
graduated  from  colle(:je. 

A  young  man  from  Scotland  came  to  New  York  with 
a  letter  of  introduction  to  him.  Before  leaving  his 
home  his  father  said  to  him,  "  You  must  be  careful  how 
you  behave  when  you  visit  Mr.  Carter ;  he  is  an  elder 
in  the  church,  and  will  tolerate  no  frivolity."     When 


FAMILY   LIFE.  113 

the  young  man  came  to  deliver  his  letter,  the  family 
were  engaged  in  a  game  of  blindman's-buff  in  their 
dining-room.  Mr.  Carter  went  to  his  guest  in  the  par- 
lor, and,  remembering  his  own  days  of  loneliness  when 
he  was  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land,  he  thought  a  little 
taste  of  home  life  would  do  him  good ;  so  he  asked  him 
if  he  would  not  like  to  participate  in  the  frolic,  and  the 
invitation  was  gladly  accepted.  The  young  man  wrote 
to  his  father  :  "  You  need  not  have  cautioned  me  about 
behaving  soberly  before  Mr.  Carter.  1  have  had  the 
jolliest  evening  at  his  house  I  ever  spent  in  my  life. 
He  is  as  full  of  fun  as  a  boy." 

After  the  death  of  Mrs.  Carter,  Mr.  Peter  Carter 
wrote  the  following  description  of  the  home  which 
he  most  intimately  knew. 

"Napoleon,  it  is  said,  being  on  one  occasion  asked  what 
was  the  greatest  need  of  France,  repHed,  'Mothers.' 

"And  so  the  greatest  need  of  America  is  Christian  mothers. 
One  beautiful  illustration  of  this  crowning  glory  of  woman 
was  Mrs.  Robert  Carter,  of  this  city,  who,  on  the  19th  of 
July  last,  entered  into  her  rest.  Like  the  Shunamite  woman 
in  the  days  of  Elisha,  '  She  dwelt  among  her  own  people.' 
Born  in  New  York  in  1810,  her  whole  life  was  spent  in  this 
city.  Baptized  in  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  Church  by  the 
eminent  Dr.  John  M.  Mason,  she  continued  till  her  death  in 
the  membership  of  that  church. 

"  Her  first-born  was  a  bright  and  lovely  boy,  too  sweet, 
too  lovely  for  earth.  He  exhibited  that  beautiful  evidence 
of  the  Holy  Spirit's  indwelling  not  unfrequently  seen  in 
those  who  are  early  transplanted  to  the  garden  of  Paradise. 
Scarlet-fever,  that  fearful  and  fatal  disease  among  children, 
carried  him  into  the  Saviour's  arms.  For  nearly  fifty  years 
that  loving  mother  cherished  the  memory  of  her  darling  boy. 
Other  children  were  given  to  her  to  train  for  usefulness,  and 

8 


114         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

how  faithfully  she  did  so  the  writer  of  this  can  testify,  as  it 
was  his  privilege  to  dwell  beneath  her  roof  for  seventeen 
years  while  the  process  of  trainuig  was  going  on.  People 
often  complain  of  the  difficulty  of  bringing  up  children  in  a 
great  city,  but  it  was  amongst  its  temptations  and  difficulties 
that  she  brought  up  hers. 

"As  day  by  day  I  saw  the  absorbing  devotion  of  that 
young  mother  to  her  little  children,  I  sometimes  wondered, 
as  a  child  will,  whether  such  devotion  would  pay.  But 
it  did  pay,  and  with  compound  interest.  The  little  homes 
that  have  gone  out  from  this  one,  modelled  on  the  same  pat- 
tern, are  in  turn  training  up  sons  and  daughters  to  be  the 
heads  of  similar  Christian  households  by  and  by.  Thus  the 
influence  of  one  wise  Christian  woman  is  being  felt,  and  will 
be  felt,  in  places  far  remote  from  her  home.  And  though  she 
has  gone  to  her  reward,  the  work  still  goes  on,  and  will,  fi'om 
generation  to  generation. 

"As  her  children  gathered  round  her,  the  missionary  box 
became  a  prominent  and  important  institution.  For  the 
cure  of  certain  faults,  and  for  the  doing  of  certain  seiwices, 
little  sums  were  paid  by  this  careful  mother  to  her  chil- 
dren, with  the  understanding  that  they  were  to  go  into 
the  missionary  box. 

"  The  children  were  brought  up  to  consider  others  rather 
than  themselves, — to  remember  that  the  only  way  to  be 
happy  was  to  labor  for  the  happiness  of  others. 

"The  Sabbath  evenings  in  this  good  woman's  house,  to 
those  who,  like  the  writer  of  this,  were  privileged  to  be  with 
her  through  many  years,  will  not  soon  be  forgotten. 

"  As  the  silent  twilight  shaded  into  the  night,  and  before 
the  candles  were  lighted,  books  were  laid  aside,  and  hymns 
and  Scripture  verses  were  repeated  in  rotation  round  the 
family  circle.  Her  favorite  selection  was  Watts's  version 
of  the  Fifty-first  Psalm  : 

'  Show  pity,  Lord,  0  Lord,  forgive ! 
Let  a  repenting  rebel  Uve. ' 


FAMILY  LIFE.  115 

"Nothing  was  ever  considered  unimportant  that  had  any 
bearing  un  the  temporal  or  spiritual  welfare  of  her  children. 
Their  diet  was  plain  and  substantial,  and  that  simple  food 
was  partalien  of  with  a  relish  unlinown  to  those  pampered 
children  who  are  fed  with  luxurious  dainties.  A  liberal  edu- 
cation was  provided  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  entertaining 
books,  and  wlien  they  were  older  and  the  circumstances  of 
their  parents  permitted  they  were  indulged  with  extensive 
travel,  both  at  home  and  abroad.  But  increasing  wealth 
was  never  cousidei'ed  any  reason  for  foolish  extravagance. 
The  only  change  it  made  in  the  household  was  the  larger 
indulgence  in  the  blessed  privilege  of  Christian  giving,  in 
which  the  children  were  encouraged  to  take  part. 

"  In  her  sweet  home  the  question  was  never  raised  whether 
square  dances  were  right  and  round  dances  wrong,  because 
dancing  was  not  indulged  in  at  all.  Nor  whether  a  game 
of  whist  was  right  and  other  card-playing  wrong,  because 
cards  never  found  a  place  in  that  household.  ISTor  whether 
drinking  a  glass  of  wine  was  a  sin  or  not,  because  the  law 
and  the  practice  of  the  house  was  to  drink  nothing  that  was 
intoxicating.  Xor  whether  certain  plays  were  moral  or 
others  immoral,  because  the  theatre  was  a  place  not  to  be 
visited. 

"  The  object  of  life  was  not  personal  gratification,  but  to 
do  something  for  God's  glory  and  the  good  of  men.  They 
were  carefully  taught  that  salvation  was  through  Christ 
alone ;  that  a  true  life  must  be  founded  on  a  true  faith.  A 
happier  household  it  was  never  my  lot  to  see.  To  her  was 
made  good  the  promise  in  the  Ninety-first  Psalm,  '  With  long 
life  will  I  satisfy  her.' 

"  She  lived  to  see  her  children  all  settled  in  life,  —  to 
see  two  of  her  sons  successful  ministers  of  the  blessed 
Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  others  serving  God  in  the 
work  he  has  given  them  to  do,  —  to  see  all  of  her  many 
grandchildren  that  were  over  fourteen  years  of  age  members 
of  the  church." 


116  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Sunday  was  a  busy  day  in  the  Carter  household. 
Church  and  Sunday  school  morning  and  afternoon 
filled  the  dayliglit  hours.  All  his  life  he  was  exceed- 
ingly careful  to  support  the  influence  of  the  clergy. 
No  word  of  criticism  of  sermons  ever  passed  his  lips. 
In  every  sermon  he  found  something  good,  and  he  liter- 
ally obeyed  Herbert's  advice,  "  Judge  not  the  preacher." 
As  twilight  came  on,  all  assembled  in  the  sitting-room, 
and  exercises  of  a  varied  character  were  begun.  Half 
the  Assembly's  Shorter  Catechism  was  recited  on  one 
Sunday  evening,  half  on  the  next;  the  children  were 
questioned  about  the  services  of  the  day,  and  even 
very  little  ones  encouraged  to  tell  what  they  remem- 
bered of  the  sermon ;  hymns  were  repeated  in  turn, 
and  some  of  the  children  were  very  ambitious  not  to 
recite  a  hymn  that  had  ever  been  given  in  the  circle 
before,  which  involved  a  good  deal  of  research  in 
hymns,  ancient  and  modern.  Bible  verses  were  read 
or  repeated. 

Mr.  Carter's  solemn  and  earnest  talks  as  they  sat  in 
the  quiet  room,  lighted  often  only  by  the  open  fire, 
can  never  be  forgotten  by  his  children.  They  will 
carry  the  impression  of  them  to  eternity.  One  of  his 
sons  specially  remembers  a  story  told  on  one  Sab- 
bath evening  of  a  father  who  was  a  godly  man,  but 
whose  children,  while  loving  and  dutiful  to  him,  were 
utterly  uninterested  in  the  claims  of  religion.  In  vain 
he  talked  with  them ;  they  remained  careless  and  un- 
impressed. One  morning  he  came  down  to  prayers,  and 
took  up  the  Bible,  but  was  so  overcome  by  deep  feel- 
ing that  he  could  not  proceed.  The  children  gathered 
about  him.  "  What  is  the  matter,  father ;  are  you  ill  ? " 
"  No,  but  I  have  had  a  terrible  dream,  and  I  cannot 
get  over  the  horror  of  it."     "  What  was  it,  father  ? " 


FAMILY   LIFE.  117 

"  I  dreamed  that  it  was  the  day  of  judgment.  The 
throne  was  set,  and  the  books  were  opened.  The  dead, 
small  and  great,  were  gathered  an  innumerable  multi- 
tude. I  stood  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Judge  ;  my  be- 
loved wife  was  at  my  side.  I  looked  about  for  my 
children,  and  I  could  not  see  them.  I  turned  to  the 
left  hand  of  the  Judge,  and  there  stood  my  beloved 
ones.  I  beckoned  to  them  ;  I  called,  '  Come  over  here, 
you  are  on  the  wrong  side';  but  a  gesture  from  the 
Judge  held  them  bound  where  they  stood,  while  from 
his  lips  came  the  words,  *  Because  I  have  called  and 
ye  refused,  I  have  stretched  out  my  hand  and  no  man 
regarded ;  but  ye  have  set  at  naught  all  my  counsel 
and  would  none  of  my  reproof:  I  also  will  laugh  at 
your  calamity;  I  will  mock  when  your  fear  cometh.' 
The  shock  of  the  dream  awoke  me.  0  my  children, 
shall  we  indeed  be  separated  at  the  last  day?"  "No, 
father,  no,"  they  exclaimed,  "our  father's  God  shall  be 
ours."  As  he  told  this  story  with  thrilling  voice  and 
heartfelt  emotion,  not  one  of  the  little  company  about 
him  but  resolved  that  there  should  be  no  separation  for 
them  from  God  and  heaven  and  parents  at  the  great 
day,  —  that  they  would  all  meet,  — 

"  No  wanderer  lost,  —  a  family  in  heaven." 

In  the  early  part  of  1854,  Mr.  Carter  was  greatly  in- 
terested in  the  visit  of  Dr.  Alexander  Duff,  of  India,  to 
America,  and  formed  for  him  a  very  strong  friendship. 
He  was  perfectly  carried  away  by  the  fiery  eloquence  of 
that  extraordinary  man,  of  whom  it  might  truly  be  said, 
"The  zeal  of  thine  house  has  eaten  me  up."  One  of  his 
illustrations  Mr.  Carter  loved  to  repeat.  Dr.  Duff  quoted 
with  thrilling  eloquence  an  old  Jacobite  song,  in  which 
a  Highland  woman  says, — 


118         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"I  hae  but  ae  son,  my  ain  dear  Donald, 
Had  1  ten  I  wad  gie  them  a'  to  Charlie, "  — 

and  then  he  appealed  to  Christian  mothers  to  devote 
their  sons  to  the  service  of  a  nobler  Prince. 

The  speeches  of  Dr.  Duff  produced  a  most  profound 
impression  in  America,  and  caused  a  great  awakening 
of  interest  for  Foreign  Missions.  On  the  13th  of  May 
he  embarked  for  Liverpool  on  the  steamship  "  Pacific," 
on  which  Mr.  Carter  had  also  taken  passage  for  himself 
and  family.  Just  before  the  steamer  left  the  wharf, 
Mr.  George  H.  Stuart,  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  name  of 
a  very  few  American  friends,  placed  in  the  hands  of  Dr. 
Duff  a  draft  for  five  thousand  pounds,  for  the  benefit  of 
a  college  the  Doctor  was  founding  in  Calcutta. 

The  ten  days'  voyage  gave  opportunity  for  much  de- 
lightful intercourse  with  Dr.  Duff.  Mr.  Carter,  after 
consultation  with  his  fellow  passengers,  went  to  the 
captain,  and  proposed  that  Dr.  Duff  should  be  invited 
to  make  an  address  in  the  cabin  every  evening  during 
the  voyage,  and  the  captain  courteously  and  cordially 
agreed,  and  himself  attended  the  meetings  as  regularly 
as  was  possible.  One  of  Mr.  Carter's  sons  overheard  a 
gay  young  passenger  saying  to  a  group  of  his  compan- 
ions, "  Dr.  Duff  and  that  man  Carter  are  bound  to  get  up 
a  revival  before  we  get  to  Liverpool."  Nothing  would 
have  pleased  better  Dr.  DuH"  or  Mr.  Carter.  The  Doc- 
tor gave  a  most  interesting  series  of  lectures  on  the  life 
of  Abraham,  and  the  passengers  attended  with  scarcely 
an  exception,  as  did  also  the  sailors  who  were  off  duty. 
Dr.  Duff  suffered  terribly  from  sea-sickness,  yet  night 
after  night  tottered  into  the  cabin,  hardly  able  to  hold 
himself  erect;  but  in  a  very  short  time  he  forgot  all  his 
disabilities  in  the  earnestness  of  his  eloquence.  He  fre- 
quently spoke  for  two  hours,  and  no  one  ever  wearied. 


JOURNEY   TO   EUROPE.  119 

The  night  the  "  Pacific  "  reached  Liverpool,  Dr.  Duff  was 
in  the  midst  of  a  lecture,  but  though  he  continued  to 
speak  for  half  an  hour  the  captain  was  the  only  person 
who  left  the  cabin.  This  was  a  remarkable  tribute  to 
Dr.  Duff's  eloquence,  as  several  gay  young  men  had 
betted  heavily  as  to  which  of  them  should  be  the  first 
to  reach  shore,  and  before  the  Doctor  ceased  speaking 
the  tender  left  the  side  of  the  ship,  and  all  the  passen- 
gers had  to  spend  the  night  on  board. 

This  journey  in  Europe  in  1854  was  a  great  pleasure 
to  Mr.  Carter  and  his  family.  It  is  not  generally 
thought  that  a  European  trip  is  of  much  advantage 
for  children,  and  the  oldest  of  these  was  but  fifteen 
years  of  age ;  yet  they  all  felt  in  after  years  that  these 
months  of  travel  with  so  capable  a  leader  as  their  father 
were  of  more  value  in  their  education  than  years  of 
schooling.  He  was  an  enthusiastic  traveller,  seeing 
everything,  going  everywhere,  loving  the  beautiful  in 
nature,  revelling  in  the  scenes  of  history  and  chivalry 
and  verse,  full  of  anecdote  and  poetry,  and  almost  en- 
cyclopedic in  information,  which  he  delighted  to  im- 
part. His  enthusiasm  was  contagious.  No  one  could 
look  in  his  beaming  face  without  longing  to  enjoy  what 
he  enjoyed  so  much. 

He  greatly  enjoyed  taking  his  children  to  the 
scenes  of  his  childhood,  and  showing  them  the  house 
where  he  was  born,  the  arbor  where  he  sat  with  his 
book  overlooking  the  path  along  which  his  cousin 
walked  to  aid  him  in  his  studies,  the  old  kirkyard 
where  his  forefathers  slept,  the  Rhymer's  Tower,  and 
"  the  bonnie,  bonnie  broom  of  the  Cowden  Knowes." 
He  spent  nearly  a  month  in  Earlston,  and  the  beau- 
tiful scenery  of  Berwickshire  became  very  familiar  to 
all.    Kelso,  Melrose,  Drvburgh,  Abbotsford,  were  visited 


120         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

repeatedly.  Perhaps  there  was  no  view  that  he  enjoyed 
more  than  that  from  Bemerside  Hill,  and  he  loved  to 
tell  that  on  Scott's  funeral  day  his  favorite  horse,  led 
riderless  in  the  procession,  stopped  just  where  the 
magnificent  prospect  burst  upon  the  view,  showing 
what  its  master's  habit  had  been.  His  knowledge 
of  and  love  for  poetry  were  very  great,  and  he  seemed 
to  have  an  appropriate  quotation  for  every  scene.  In 
Melrose  Abbey  he  was  greatly  impressed  with  an  in- 
scription on  an  old  tombstone,  and  he  often  quoted 
it  in  after  years  : 

"Earth  walks  on  the  earth  glittering  with  gold, 
Eanh  goes  to  the  earth  sooner  than  it  wold, 
Earth  builds  on  the  earth  castles  and  towers, 
Earth  says  to  the  earth,  'All  shall  be  ours.'  " 

At  another  time  he  was  much  struck  by  an  inscription 
on  an  old  sun-dial : 

"  I  'm  a  shadow,  —  so  art  thou. 
I  mark  time,  —  dost  thou  ? " 

With  one  of  his  sons  he  at  this  time  made  quite  an 
extensive  tour  in  the  Highlands,  a  trip  which  was  al- 
ways a  vivid  memory  to  the  boy.  He  said  long  after- 
wards, that  no  one  could  know  what  his  father  was  as 
a  traveller  until  he  had  him  off  entirely  by  himself, 
with  no  baggage  but  what  could  be  carried  in  the 
hand,  and  no  care  to  burden  him.  On  one  occasion 
they  travelled  all  day  on  the  stage-coach  going  to  Inver- 
ness, and  on  the  box-seat  sat  a  stout  gentleman  with  a 
Scotch  cap  pulled  down  over  his  eyes.  The  next  day 
this  same  gentleman  came  up  to  them  on  the  Cale- 
donian Canal  boat,  and  saluted  Mr.  Carter  with  a  hearty 
greeting.  It  was  Dr.  Norman  Macleod.  "  Why,  father," 
said  the  boy,  "this  gentleman  rode  with  us  on  the  stage- 


MRS.   DUNCAN.  121 

coach  all  day  yesterday."  Both  were  greatly  disgusted 
to  think  that  they  had  lost  so  much  valuable  time,  but 
they  made  up  for  it  by  a  day  of  most  enjoyable  con- 
verse. Just  as  they  were  nearing  Oban  at  night,  Dr. 
Macleod  exclaimed,  "By  the  way,  I  had  a  lady  put 
under  my  charge  this  morning,  with  tlie  request  that  I 
would  see  after  her  a  little,  and  I  have  never  thought  of 
her  all  day.  I  must  look  her  up."  Mr.  Carter  writes 
of  this  interview,  "  He  was  brimful  of  Celtic  lore,  and 
gave  me  many  pictures  of  Highland  life."  They  had 
met  before  and  become  well  acquainted  in  New  York, 
a  short  time  after  the  Disruption,  when  Dr.  Macleod 
came  into  the  store  with  letters  of  introduction.  On 
being  asked  if  he  was  a  Free  Churchman,  he  replied, 
"No,  I'm  afraid  you  will  think  I  am  a  black  sheep." 
But  Mr.  Carter,  though  greatly  interested  in  the  Free 
Church,  knew  no  narrow  lines  in  his  friendships. 
Strong  in  his  own  convictions,  he  always  respected 
those  of  others,  and  saw  very  clearly  the  wide  ground 
on  which  all  Christians  could  meet. 

While  in  Edinburgh  Mr.  Carter  had  much  pleasant 
intercourse  with  Principal  Cunningham,  and  while  in 
London  with  Dr.  James  Hamilton.  Much  of  his  enjoy- 
ment in  all  his  journeys  to  Europe  arose  from  association 
with  men  with  whom  he  had  long  held  correspondence. 
In  Kelso  he  again  met  Mrs.  Duncan,  who  had  visited  his 
house  in  New  York,  and  whose  Memorial  of  her  daufrh- 
ter,  Mary  Lundie  Duncan,  he  had  published,  as  well  as 
several  other  of  her  books. 

Mrs.  Duncan's  first  husband  had  been  the  Eev.  Dr. 
Lundie,  a  distinguished  clergyman  of  Kelso.  After  his 
death  she  had  married  the  Rev.  Dr.  Duncan,  while  her 
daughter,  Mary  Lundie,  married  his  son,  also  a  clergy- 
man.      Another  daughter  married  the  Rev.  Horatius 


122  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

Bonar,  D.D.,  the  well  known  poet,  and  Mrs.  Bonar  her- 
self wrote  the  beautiful  hymn  — 

"  Pass  away  earthly  joy, 

Jesus  is  mine." 

A  few  years  before,  Mr.  Carter  from  his  mother-in- 
law's  country-house  had  witnessed  the  burning  of  the 
steamboat  "Henry  Clay"  on  the  Hudson.  He  told 
Mrs.  Duncan  that  among  the  passengers  was  a  young 
and  lovely  American  lady,  whose  body  was  found  with 
the  memorial  of  Mary  Lundie  Duncan  clasped  in  her 
hands,  with  her  finger  marking  the  place  in  the  volume 
where  she  had  been  reading  when  the  death  messenger 
came  to  her. 

Mrs.  Duncan  was  a  lady  of  remarkable  personal 
beauty  and  stately  presence,  and  her  conversation  and 
correspondence  were  greatly  valued  by  Mr.  Carter. 
Among  the  books  he  published  for  her  was  the  Memo- 
rial of  her  son,  Eev.  George  Lundie,  missionary  to  Sa- 
moa. In  her  book,  "  Children  of  the  Manse,"  she  gives 
an  account  of  the  early  training  of  her  children,  and 
those  who  read  it  will  not  wonder  that  such  a  family 
life  as  hers  resulted  in  such  lives  as  those  of  Mary, 
George,  and  Catharine  Lundie. 

An  amusing  incident  of  her  early  married  life  was 
often  related  by  Mr.  Carter.  When  the  Total  Abstinence 
movement  first  began,  Mr.  Lundie  and  she  became  strong 
advocates  of  the  cause.  In  those  days  it  was  the  cus- 
tom to  give  a  glass  of  whiskey  in  addition  to  the  regular 
pay  to  any  one  who  came  about  a  house  for  an  odd  job  ; 
but  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lundie  made  up  their  minds  that  such 
things  must  be  stopped  in  their  house.  A  man  was 
hired  to  carry  in  their  winter  coal,  and  when  the  work 
was  done  Mrs.  Lundie  told  him  that  the  minister  had 


WRECK  OF  THE  "ARCTIC."  123 

joined  the  Temperance  Society  and  had  decided  that 
there  must  be  no  more  giving  of  whiskey  in  their  home. 
"  But,"  said  she,  "  here  is  sixpence  for  you,  and  that  will 
be  far  better  for  the  wife  and  bairns  than  that  you 
should  be  drinking  whiskey."  As  he  walked  down  the 
street  he  met  Mr.  Lundie,  who  said,  "  I  suppose  my 
wife  did  not  give  you  any  whiskey  to-day,  Jock."  "  Na, 
na,  sir."  "  Well,  here  is  a  shilling  for  you,  and  you  '11 
find  yourself  far  better  off  than  if  you  had  had  the 
whiskey."  Jock  took  the  shilling,  and  with  that  and 
Mrs.  Lundie's  sixpence  he  got  more  whiskey  than  he  had 
had  in  many  a  day,  and  came  reeling  back  to  the  manse, 
where  he  stood  holding  on  to  the  front  gate,  waving  his 
hat  and  shouting,  "  Mr.  Lundie  and  the  Temperance 
Society  forever!  Mr.  Lundie  and  the  Temperance 
Society  forever ! " 

After  some  months  of  travel  in  Great  Britain  and  on 
the  Continent,  the  party  returned  to  America.  They 
had  sailed  to  Europe  on  the  "  Pacific,"  one  of  the  Collins 
line  of  steamers,  and  on  the  voyage  Mr.  Carter  had 
noticed  some  little  incident  which  he  thought  betokened 
negligence  in  the  arrangements  of  the  vessel.  He  had 
almost  forgotten  the  circumstance,  and  while  in  London 
he  went  to  the  Collins  office  and  chose  state-rooms  on 
the  "  Arctic,"  doing  everything  but  actually  engage  his 
passage.  Suddenly  there  flashed  into  his  mind  a  recol- 
lection of  the  incident,  and  he  decided  to  take  passage 
on  the  Cunard  steamer  "  Europa,"  which  sailed  the  same 
week.  The  "  Arctic "  was  lost  on  that  voyage,  and  a 
large  number  of  passengers  perished.  At  Halifax  the 
"  Europa  "  took  on  board  and  carried  to  Boston  the  sur- 
vivors of  the  wreck.  After  leaving  Halifax,  a  heavy  fog 
settled  down  over  the  "Europa,"  just  as  it  had  around 
the  "  Arctic  "  at  the  time  of  the  collision  which  caused 


124         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

her  to  founder,  and  it  was  a  most  pathetic  sight  to  see 
her  rescued  passengers  peering  out  into  the  obscurity 
from  the  deck  of  the  '  Europa,"  and  dreading  lest  they 
might  again  encounter  shipwreck.  A  few  years  later, 
the  "  Pacific  "  sailed  from  port  and  was  never  heard  from 
again. 

When  he  was  leaving  home  on  this  voyage  to  Eu- 
rope, one  of  his  Sunday  school  teachers  came  to  him 
to  talk  about  a  boy  in  her  class  who  had  long  been 
very  troublesome,  and  said  :  "  I  wish  before  you  go  that 
you  would  dismiss  that  boy  from  the  school.  It  is  hard 
enough  work  for  us  to  control  him  while  you  are  here, 
the  only  person  of  whom  he  stands  in  awe.  When  you 
go,  he  will  be  unmanageable."  Mr.  Carter  told  her  that 
he  could  not  take  the  responsibility  of  dismissing  a  boy 
from  what  was  perhaps  the  only  good  influence  in  his 
life.  One  of  the  first  letters  that  reached  him  in  Eng- 
land informed  him  of  the  death  of  this  boy  by  drown- 
ing while  bathing  on  Sunday.  Over  and  over  again 
in  after  life  he  spoke  of  this,  and  thanked  God  that 
he  had  not  turned  that  boy  out  of  school,  as  if  he 
had  done  so  he  should  have  felt  that  he  had  given 
him  the  opportunity  of  Sabbath-breaking  which  led  to 
his  death. 

On  their  return  to  America  Mr.  Carter's  two  eldest 
sons,  fifteen  and  fourteen  years  of  age,  matriculated  at 
the  New  York  University,  whence  they  graduated  with 
the  first  and  second  honors  of  their  class,  in  1858.  All 
through  their  college  course  Mr.  Carter  exercised  the 
same  careful  oversight  over  their  studies  that  he  did 
when  they  were  in  school,  and  their  young  companions 
always  had  a  ready  welcome  to  the  house.  Hospitality 
was  ever  one  of  his  most  marked  virtues.  He  kept 
open  house,  and  the  family  were  seldom  without  guests, 


REMOVAL   OF   BOOKSTORE.  125 

and  he  made  a  model  host,  cordial  and  hearty,  and  full 
of  chat  and  anecdote.  His  conversational  powers  were 
of  a  high  order,  and  the  table  talk  and  evening  gath- 
erings in  the  parlor  were  very  delightful.  He  had  as 
visitors  clergymen  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  and 
his  children  have  delightful  memories,  at  a  little  later 
period,  of  such  men  as  Bishop  Bickersteth,  Eev.  John 
Ker  of  Glasgow,  Dr.  McCosh,  Dr.  Monod  of  Paris,  Dr. 
Thornwell  of  South  Carolina,  and  many  others. 

In  1856  the  bookstore  was  removed  from  285  to  530 
Broadway.  He  had  a  lease  of  the  old  store,  but  his  land- 
lord, without  asking  his  consent,  took  away  the  light 
from  the  back  of  the  store  by  building  over  the  skylight, 
and  at  the  same  time  took  away  one  third  of  the  front 
of  the  store  by  building  a  staircase  there.  The  work 
was  begun  without  giving  the  slightest  notice.  When 
he  went  down  to  the  store  one  morning,  he  found  the 
books  had  been  taken  down  from  one  side  of  the  front, 
and  the  workmen  were  starting  the  new  stairway.  Ee- 
monstrance  was  in  vain  ;  the  landlord  would  not  give  in. 
A  lawyer  was  consulted,  who  said  that  the  case  was  a 
clear,  though  it  might  be  a  tedious  one.  But  Mr.  Carter 
decided  to  keep  to  his  old  resolution  rather  to  suffer 
wrong  than  to  go  to  law.  He  did  not  wish  it  said 
that  one  Christian  man  was  suing  another.  He  im- 
mediately began  to  look  about  for  a  store,  and  bought 
one  on  the  corner  of  Broadway  and  Spring  Street.  In 
a  few  years  it  was  worth  twice  what  he  paid  for  it, 
so  his  peace-loving  propensities  brought  him  nothing 
but  good. 

The  old  store  at  285  was  under  the  Irving  House, 
where  a  great  many  colored  servants  were  employed. 
One  day  the  proprietor  came  to  Mr.  Carter  and  told 
him  that  one  of  the  waiters  was  a  runaway  slave,  and 


126  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

that  he  had  heard  that  his  master  had  come  to  New 
York  with  a  search-warrant,  and  was  expecting  to  ar- 
rest him  and  carr}'  him  off  to  the  South.  Mr.  Carter 
gladly  contributed  towards  the  poor  fellow's  travelling 
expenses  to  Canada,  as  he  had  repeatedly  done  in  simi- 
lar cases  before.  That  afternoon  the  fugitive  slave  took 
passage  on  a  Hudson  River  boat  for  Albany,  when,  just 
as  the  boat  started,  a  carriage  was  driven  furiously  up, 
and  his  master  with  a  constable  came  on  board.  The 
feeling  was  so  strong  against  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law 
that  the  master  did  not  think  it  best  to  raise  a  commo- 
tion on  the  boat  by  arresting  him  at  once,  Vjut  thou;:ht 
he  would  take  quiet  possession  of  the  man  when  they 
were  disembarking  at  Albany.  The  poor  slave  cowered 
down  among  some  bales  in  the  forward  part  of  the  boat, 
and  felt  that  his  hour  had  almost  come.  Among  the 
passengers  he  noticed  a  man  with  a  very  benevolent 
countenance,  and  he  thought  he  would  throw  himself 
upon  his  protection.  He  managed  to  attract  the  gentle- 
man's attention,  and  told  him  his  story  while  his  master 
and  the  constable  were  amusing  themselves  in  the 
cabin,  knowing  that  the  boat  did  not  make  any  stops 
before  reaching  Albany,  and  feeling  sure  that  their 
%4ctim  was  securely  trapped.  The  kindly  man's  sym- 
pathies were  all  aroused  by  the  poor  fellow's  story,  and 
he  went  to  the  captain  to  see  what  could  be  done.  The 
captain  said  that  it  would  not  do  for  him  to  seem  to 
take  any  part  in  the  matter,  but  that  the  gentleman 
might  tell  the  slave  that  when  they  reached  Albany  the 
vessel  would  accidentally  touch  the  pier,  and  then  veer 
off  into  the  stream  again,  that  he  must  be  ready  to 
spring  for  liberty,  and  that  it  would  then  take  about 
half  an  hour  to  turn  the  boat  and  touch  the  wharf  prop- 
erly, and  in  the  mean  while  the  train  for  Canada  would 


FUGITIVE  SLAVES.  127 

be  off.  The  programme  was  fully  carried  out,  the  slave 
sprang  off  and  dashed  through  tlie  crowd  at  the  land- 
ing, and  the  boat  veered  off  to  rectify  the  captain's  un- 
fortunate blunder.  The  master  came  up  to  the  captain 
in  a  towering  passion,  "  Do  you  see  what  you  have 
done  ?  Your  stupidity  has  allowed  my  servant  to 
escape."  "  You  did  not  take  me  into  your  confidence. 
How  did  I  know  you  had  a  servant  on  board  ?  If 
you  had  only  told  me,  I  might  have  had  him  put  in 
irons."  The  slave-owner  had  to  swallow  his  wrath, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  the  whistle  of  the  train  was 
heard  on  its  way  to  Canada,  bearing  with  it  one  man 
who  felt  that  he  had  a  right  to  "  life,  liberty,  and  the 
pursuit  of  happiness." 

One  day  a  nice-looking  colored  man,  a  clergyman, 
came  into  the  store  begging  money  for  his  church,  and 
entered  into  conversation  with  Mr.  Carter,  and  told 
him  his  history.  He  had  been  a  slave  in  Kentucky; 
his  master  was  a  very  hard  man,  drinking  and  gam- 
bling The  slave  was  very  fleet  of  foot,  and  had  won 
prizes  for  his  master  at  the  races.  He  married  a  young 
girl  on  a  neighboring  plantation,  and  then,  being  filled 
with  fear  lest  he  should  be  sold  away  from  her,  he  went 
to  her  master,  who  was  a  very  benevolent  man,  and 
begged  him  to  buy  him,  that  he  might  be  with  his  wife. 
The  planter  bought  him,  made  him  his  coachman,  gave 
him  a  comfortable  little  cabin,  and  for  a  while  he  was 
perfectly  happy.  But  one  day  he  was  driving  out  his 
master  and  a  friend,  and  overheard  a  conversation  in 
which  the  master  said  that  he  was  sick  of  the  planta- 
tion life,  and  had  serious  thoughts  of  selling  out  and 
going  North  to  live.  The  slave's  heart  sank  within 
him.  He  had  had  one  bad  master,  and  did  not  want 
another. 


128  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

He  talked  the  matter  over  with  his  wife,  and  they 
decided  that  he  must  take  the  first  opportunity  to  escape 
to  Canada,  and  then,  as  soon  as  he  could  earn  the  money, 
he  should  buy  her  freedom.  A  few  days  after,  he  was 
sent  on  an  errand  to  a  neighboring  town,  and  embraced 
the  opportunity  to  run  away.  He  got  safely  to  Canada, 
but  in  a  short  time  he  found  that  he  could  get  higher 
wages  at  the  Cataract  House  at  Niagara ;  so  he  crossed 
the  river  and  took  service  there,  being  very  anxious  to 
buy  his  wife's  liberty  as  soon  as  possible.  One  day  as 
he  entered  the  dining-room  he  saw  his  master  at  one 
of  the  tables.  He  started  back  in  dismay,  hurried  out 
of  the  door,  and  made  his  way  as  quickly  as  possible 
to  the  Canada  side.  His  master  noticed  the  confusion, 
and  inquired  the  cause,  and  found  that  his  former 
slave  was  in  the  neighborhood.  He  sent  word  to  him 
to  come  and  see  him,  as  he  wanted  to  talk  with  him, 
and  he  need  have  no  fear  of  being  captured.  The 
slave  knew  that  he  could  fully  trust  his  master's 
honor,  and  came  to  see  him.  The  master  said  to  him, 
"  Don't  you  think  you  have  treated  me  very  badly  ? 
I  only  bought  you  because  you  pleaded  so  earnestly 
with  me.  I  did  everything  I  could  to  make  you  com- 
fortable, and  I  thought  you  were  happy  and  contented." 
"  Yes,  massa,  you  were  very  good  to  me,  and  I  loved 
you  very  much."  "Why  then  did  you  leave  me?" 
"Do  you  remember  that  day  I  was  driving  you  with 
Mr.  So-and-so,  and  you  said  that  you  were  thinking 
of  selling  out  ? "  "  Yes,  I  remember,  but  I  did  not 
think  you  heard."  "  I  heard  it  all,  and  I  felt  that  I 
could  not  stay  and  be  sold  down  the  river.  Don't 
think  me  ungrateful,  but  I  felt  I  must  be  free." 

They  talked  for  some  time,  and  at  last  the  master 
said,  "  I  think  you  have  talents  that  would  fit  you  for 


FUGITIVE   SLAVES.  129 

preaching  to  your  own  people.  I  will  give  you  free 
papers,  and  support  you  while  you  study  for  the  Meth- 
odist ministry."  The  next  year  he  came  North  again, 
bringing  the  man's  wife  and  little  child.  He  gave  them 
all  manumission  papers,  and  interested  himself  for 
them  until  his  death.  "  0  Mr.  Carter,"  said  the  poor 
man  the  tears  rolling  down  his  cheeks,  "  he  was  a  good 
man,  my  massa.  He  was  the  best  man  I  ever  saw  in 
my  life." 

The  former  slave  was  now  settled  in  a  little  African 
Church  in  New  York.  Mr.  Carter  asked  him  how  he 
was  off  for  books.  "  That  is  my  worst  trouble.  I  have 
hardly  any  books.  It  is  like  making  bricks  without 
straw."  Mr.  Carter  laid  out  a  long  row  of  commen- 
taries and  other  books,  and  asked  him  if  he  had  any  of 
those.  "  Not  one  of  them.  But,  Mr.  Carter,  I  have  no 
money,  I  cannot  buy  books.  The  money  you  have  given 
me  is  for  the  church."  Mr.  Carter  told  him  they  were 
his  as  a  gift.  "  0  how  can  I  thank  you  !  I  never  saw  so 
many  nice  books  together  in  my  life."  They  w^ere  made 
up  in  a  huge  bundle,  and  lifted  to  his  shoulder,  and  Mr. 
Carter  said  his  beaming  face,  as  he  went  off  with  his 
load  trying  to  bow  his  thanks  to  the  very  last,  was  a 
sight  to  see.  He  came  about  the  store  a  good  deal 
while  he  was  stationed  in  New  York,  but  finally  re- 
moved to  a  distant  part  of  the  country. 

Mr.  Carter  was  greatly  interested  in  the  colored 
race.  A  colored  Sunday  school  connected  with  the 
Scotch  Church  always  met  with  hearty  support  and 
co-operation  from  him.  His  brother  Peter  was  its  su- 
perintendent for  more  than  thirty  years,  and  the  fam- 
ilies of  both  brothers  were  largely  represented  among 
its  teachers. 

One  of  the  oldest  members  of  the  Scotch  Church  and 
9 


130  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

warmest  friends  of  Mr.  Carter  was  a  colored  woman 
named  Katy  Ferguson,  born  a  slave  in  1774.  When 
she  was  but  four  years  of  age,  her  mother  was  sold  to 
another  master,  and  torn  from  her  forever.  Katy,  in 
speaking  of  this  cruel  separation  long  afterwards,  said, 
"  Mr.  B.  sold  my  mother,  and  she  was  carried  away 
from  me ;  but  I  remember  that  before  we  parted  we 
knelt  down,  and  she  laid  her  hand  on  my  head  and 
gave  me  to  God."  When  Katy  was  fifteen  years  old, 
she  joined  Dr.  Mason's  church.  Some  of  the  members 
objected  to  having  one  of  her  color  sit  down  with  them 
at  the  communion  table.  Dr.  Mason  heard  of  this  feel- 
ing, but  said  nothing  until  the  time  of  the  communion 
service,  when  he  came  down  from  his  pulpit,  and,  pass- 
ing along  the  aisle  to  the  pew  where  the  trembling 
Katy  sat,  took  her  by  the  hand,  and,  leading  her  for- 
ward, said,  "  Whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my  Father 
which  is  in  Heaven,  the  same  is  my  brother,  and  sister, 
and  mother.  For  by  one  Spirit  are  we  all  baptized  into 
one  body,  whether  we  be  Jews  or  Gentiles,  whether 
we  be  bond  or  free ;  we  have  been  all  made  to  drink 
into  one  Spirit.  Where  there  is  neither  Greek  nor  Jew, 
circumcision  nor  uncircumcision,  Barbarian,  Scythian, 
bond  nor  free;  but  Christ  is  all,  and  in  all."  And 
seating  her  at  the  holy  table,  which  was  spread  in  the 
aisle,  and  around  which  according  to  Scottish  custom 
the  communicants  sat,  he  said  again,  as  he  put  into 
her  hand  the  memorials  of  our  Saviour's  love,  and  in 
a  tone  and  manner  that  filled  every  heart  with  deepest 
emotion,  "  Eat,  0  friend !  drink,  yea  drink  abundantly, 
0  beloved!"  The  scene  was  most  affecting  and  impres- 
sive, and  most  efifectually  accomplished  the  end  desired. 
Katy  supported  herself  by  making  delicate  confections 
for  dinner  and  evening  parties        She  was  a  woman  of 


KATY  FERGUSON.  131 

earnest  piety.  She  started  the  first  Sunday  school  in 
New  York,  early  in  the  present  century,  by  gathering 
together  into  her  room  poor  little  street  waifs,  black  and 
white,  for  she  had  no  color  prejudice.  Hers  was  also 
the  first  Children's  Aid  Society.  She  picked  up  from 
the  streets  at  different  times  forty-eight  orphan  or  des- 
titute children,  fed  and  clothed  and  educated  them  to 
the  best  of  her  ability  with  the  aid  of  the  public  schools, 
until  she  could  find  suitable  homes  for  them,  or  else 
herself  trained  them  to  a  useful  womanhood  or  man- 
hood. It  is  said  that  every  one  of  these  children  turned 
out  well.  Of  this  faithful  negro  woman  it  may  be  said 
truly,  "  She  hath  done  what  she  could." 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carter  frequently  visited  her  in  her 
home  and  helped  her  in  her  work.  One  day  when  she 
was  nearly  eighty  years  of  age  she  called  to  see  Mrs. 
Carter,  and  seemed  greatly  exhausted  with  her  long 
walk  from  her  down- town  home.  When  she  was  leaving, 
Mrs.  Carter  said,  "  Don't  think  of  walking  home,  Katy, 
here  is  money  for  your  stage  fare."  "  Why,  Mrs.  Carter, 
they  would  n't  let  a  colored  woman  ride  in  an  omnibus." 

A  very  few  weeks  later  she  entered  into  her  eternal 
rest.  Doubtless  the  poor  old  negro  woman,  who  had 
been  grudged  a  welcome  by  some  professing  Christians 
into  the  church  below,  and  had  trudged  with  weary 
steps  along  earth's  highways,  was  carried  by  angels  to 
the  pearly  gates  and  had  an  abundant  entrance  minis- 
tered unto  her  into  the  light  and  glory  above.  There 
would  be  no  stay  in  the  Master's  step  to  meet  her,  and 
His  "  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant ! "  was  as 
full  and  hearty  to  her  as  to  many  whom  the  church 
has  honored  as  its  noblest  and  best. 

In  a  letter  from  Mr.  Carter  to  his  family,  written 
from  Charleston,  he  makes  mention  of  another  old  col- 


132  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

ored  woman  in  whom  he  was  greatly  interested.  In 
1855  he  went  as  a  delegate  to  the  General  Assembly 
at  Nashville,  Tennessee,  visiting  on  the  way  at  the  house 
of  a  very  dear  friend,  Mr.  James  McCarter,  a  bookseller 
of  Charleston.  The  names  of  the  two  friends  were  a 
good  deal  alike,  and  their  faces  were  still  more  so ;  in 
fact,  they  were  often  told  that  they  looked  like  twins. 
Mr.  Carter  writes  :  — 

"  It  is  now  the  hour  which  we  usually  spend  in  talk- 
ing of  the  things  that  concern  our  eternal  interests. 
How  I  miss  you  all  now !  It  is  too  much  for  me  to 
think  of  it !     May  God  bless  you  all  ! 

"  Mr.  McCarter  took  me  in  the  morning  to  his  church, 
where  we  heard  ^Mr.  Jones  from  Philadelphia.  In  the 
afternoon  I  went  to  Dr.  Smyth's  church,  and  heard  an 
excellent  sermon  from  the  text,  '  Unite  my  heart  to  fear 
thy  name.'  O  that  all  our  hearts  were  thus  united  in 
the  fear  and  love  of  God ! 

"  I  then  went  to  the  colored  Sabbath  school,  and  my 
heart  melted  within  me  to  see  a  hundred  black  chil- 
dren listening  to  the  instructions  of  their  teachers,  and 
not  any  of  them  with  Bible,  hymn-book,  or  text-book 
in  their  hands.  How  sad  it  is  that,  in  this  land  of 
Sabbaths  and  Bibles  and  good  books,  so  large  a  portion 
of  our  fellow  beings  should  be  deprived  of  the  privi- 
lege of  reading  God's  blessed  Book !  The  teachers  are 
evidently  men  of  God,  doing  the  best  they  can  under 
the  circumstances ;  but  how  little  fruit  can  be  expected 
where  such  barriers  are  thrown  up  to  the  free  ingress 
of  the  Gospel !  The  mode  of  instruction  is  that  used 
in  infant  schools.  The  teacher  puts  questions,  and  all 
answer  at  once.  If  they  do  not  know  the  answer,  he 
repeats  the  words,  and  they  follow.  Their  singing  of 
'  The  Happy  Land  '  was  beautiful. 


PIOUS  OLD  COLORED  WOMAN.  133 

"An  old  woman  in  Mr.  McCarter's  family  was  intro- 
duced to  me.  I  asked  her  how  old  she  was.  '  Don't 
know,  massa.'  '  Do  you  know  the  Lord  Jesus  ? '  '0 
yes,  massa,  I  sleep  with  Jesus,  I  walk  with  Jesus,  I  eat 
with  Jesus,  I  drink  with  Jesus.  Jesus  has  promised  to 
come  soon  and  take  me  home.'  And  then,  pressing 
her  hands  upon  her  breast,  she  exclaimed,  '  0  how  happy 
I  shall  be ! '  Mr.  McCarter  said  that  grace  had  done 
more  for  her  than  any  one  he  ever  knew. 

"  0  my  dear  children,  how  much  reason  have  you  to 
bless  God  that  you  are  not  placed  in  the  condition  of 
slaves !  and  yet  the  poor  slave  that  talked  with  me  to- 
day about  the  love  of  Jesus  may  take  a  higher  place  in 
the  kingdom  of  Heaven  than  some  of  us.  May  God 
enable  us  all  to  improve  our  privileges,  and  while  it  is 
yet  to-day  labor  in  the  Lord's  vineyard  as  we  have 
opportunity ! 

"There  is  much  here  to  arrest  the  attention  of  a 
Northern  man,  but  I  do  not  wish,  on  the  evening  of 
the  Lord's  day,  to  speak  of  things  temporal  and  tran- 
sitory. 0  that  the  scenes  I  have  witnessed  may  make 
me  more  devoted  to  the  service  of  the  Master  than  ever 
before !  My  mind  has  been  so  tossed  about  and  har- 
assed that  I  cannot  attain  that  blessed  peace  which  I 
have  so  often  enjoyed  at  home.  The  Sabbath  has  been 
for  many  years  so  laden  with  blessings,  that  when  I  oc- 
casionally wander  abroad  I  miss  exceedingly  the  quiet 
and  peaceful  enjoyment  which  I  prize  so  highly.  May 
we  remember  each  other  daily  at  the  throne  of  grace,  and 
fervently  pray  for  such  blessings  as  we  so  much  need. 
We  can  thus  help  each  other  mightily,  though  far  sepa- 
rated, and  in  blessing  each  other  be  ourselves  blessed. 

"  To-morrow  at  eight  we  leave  for  Nashville.  I  shall 
hope  for  letters  there  from  you  all.     Will  not  that  be 


134  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

fine  ?  0  that  I  had  them  now !  Farewell,  and  may 
the  Good  Shepherd  of  the  sheep  watch  over,  lead,  and 
bless  us  all." 

It  may  not  be  amiss  to  insert  here  another  letter  of 
Mr.  Carter's,  written  two  years  before,  while  a  delegate 
to  the  Assembly  at  Philadelphia,  as  a  specimen  of  the 
letters  he  constantly  wrote  to  his  family  when  sepa- 
rated from  them.  On  this  occasion  he  had  been  home 
on  furlough  over  Sabbath,  and  writes  on  his  return  to 
his  post :  — 

"  My  dear  Wife,  —  With  the  tenderest  feelings  I 
parted  from  you  this  morning.  The  few  hours  we 
spent  together  from  Saturday  evening  until  I  left  you 
this  morning  were  hours  of  as  unmingled  enjoyment 
as  we  ever  expect  to  enjoy  this  side  Heaven.  Truly, 
our  Father  has  bountifully  blessed  us.  0  that  our 
lives  may  be  wholly  consecrated  to  Him  ! 

"  The  dear  children !  I  did  feel  sorry  that  we  had 
not  indulged  them  with  a  ride  this  morning,  it  was  so 
fine  and  clear  and  mild.  May  we  be  enabled  to  deal 
faithfully  with  them,  and  may  the  Lord  and  Saviour 
dwell  in  them  richly  by  his  Spirit.  0  to  see  them 
safe  in  the  ark ! 

"  Dear  T ,  you  have  now  reached  the  age  at  which 

your  father  was  enrolled  a  member  of  the  church  visible. 
I  sat  down  at  the  communion  table  when  I  was  four- 
teen years  of  age,  and  the  Master  whom  I  have  served 
has  not  been  a  hard  Master.  I  have  reason  to  bless 
him  for  the  way  in  which  he  has  led  me  from  that  day 
to  this.  '  Choose  ye  this  day  whom  ye  will  serve.'  O 
delay  not !  Pray  earnestly  that  your  father's  God,  the 
God  of  your  mother,  may  be  your  own  God,  and  may 
the  Comforter  manifest  Jesus  in  your  heart  now  and 
forever. 


LETTER  TO  HIS  FAMILY.  135 

"  Dear  S ,  what  I  have  said  to  T is  nearly  as 

applicable  to  you.  You  have  grown  up  together,  studied 
together,  eaten  together,  travelled  together.  He  for 
whom  you  are  named  is  an  angel  in  heaven,  and  will 
joy  over  you  when  you  enter  in  the  narrow  way  that 
leadeth  unto  life. 

"  Dear  R ,  what  shall  I  say  to  you  ?     I  need  not 

ask  you  if  you  love  your  father  and  mother.  I  know 
you  do.  Then,  my  dear  boy,  pray  to  God  to  bless  you, 
and  keep  you,  and  lead  you  in  the  path  your  fathers 
trod,  that  you  may  when  you  die  enter  their  bright 
abodes  on  high. 

"  And  my  dear  little  daughter,  my  only  daughter,  if 
you  be  as  good  and  happy  as  your  parents  pray  you 
may  be,  your  portion  will  be  that  of  those  who  love 
and  serve  the  Lord.  You  will  do  what  you  can  to 
please  your  papa  and  mamma,  and  above  all  to  please 
God.  Never  forget  that  God  sees  you  by  day  and  by 
night.  And  when  you  pray,  ask  for  his  blessing,  as 
you  would  ask  mamma  for  bread  when  you  are  hungry, 
or  water  when  you  are  thirsty. 

"  And  now,  my  dear  wife  and  children  all,  my  heart 
yearns  over  you.  May  we  all  be  of  one  heart  and  of 
one  mind,  children  of  the  Most  High,  journeying  to  our 
home  above  ! 

"  Poor  Grandma  [Mrs.  Thomson],  I  suppose  you  think 
it  unkind  to  address  you  last.  But  you  know  the  feel- 
ings we  all  cherish  towards  you,  and  it  is  not  so  easy 
to  admonish  one  who  was  in  Christ  before  I  was  born. 
May  your  last  years  be  your  brightest,  your  happiest, 
your  holiest.  Though  the  earthly  spring  in  which  you 
so  much  delighted  be  dried  up,  the  Fountain  is  still 
open.     May  it  refresh  you  daily  ! " 

Mr.  Carter's  earnest  longing  for  the  conversion  of  his 


136  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

children  was  early  gratified.  His  oldest  son  says,  that 
when  a  few  years  later  he  told  his  father  that  the  young- 
est of  the  family,  thirteen  years  old,  wished  to  unite  with 
the  church,  he  burst  into  joyful  tears,  exclaiming,  "  I 
have  n't  deserved  this.  How  good  God  is  to  me,  —  so 
much  better  than  I  deserve  ! "  He  had  no  greater  joy 
than  to  see  his  children  walk  in  the  truth.  In  his  old 
age  he  rejoiced  with  joy  unspeakable  as  one  after  an- 
other his  grandchildren  came  into  the  fold.  He  was 
wont  to  say,  with  thanksgiving,  that  of  his  twenty- 
five  grandchildren  all  over  twelve  years  of  age  were 
members  of  the  church,  some  of  them  entering  into 
communion  at  a  very  tender  age. 

He  was  greatly  interested  in  the  cause  of  Total  Ab- 
stinence, and  took  every  opportunity  to  enforce  his 
views  on  this  subject.  The  following  stories  were 
often  told  by  him  in  public  addresses  and  in  private 
conversations  :  — 

"  When  a  boy  of  twelve  years,  I  was  in  a  field  a  mile 
from  home,  on  a  bright  October  day,  helping  to  gather 
in  the  potato  crop.  A  man  came  up  to  us,  and  asked 
if  we  had  heard  the  news.  We  said  no.  '  Last  night 
on  his  way  home  from  the  fair  Rob  Scott  murdered  two 
men  without  any  apparent  cause.'  In  our  village  there 
were  two  fairs  or  great  market  days  in  the  year.  On 
these  days  the  liquor  shops  were  doing  a  great  business, 
and  men  who  were  sober  all  through  the  year  became 
intoxicated.  Rob  Scott  was  of  this  number.  He  had 
tasted  whiskey  only  once  before  in  his  life,  and  that 
fatal  night  he  overtook  two  men  walking  peacefully 
home,  and  in  a  frenzy  knocked  down  one  and  then  the 
other,  and  ran  to  a  cottage  a  short  distance  off  and  cried 
aloud,  '  I  have  killed  two  men  down  on  the  road.'  He 
was  known  by  the  family,  as  he  lived  only  a  half-mile 


TEMPERANCE   STORIES.  137 

from  the  spot,  and  they  said,  '  You  are  crazy,  it  cannot 
be  so.'  '  It  is  so.  Go  and  see.'  They  went  and  found 
the  two  men.  One  of  them  said,  '  I  am  Simm,  from 
Greenlaw.'  The  murderer  ran  thirty  miles  that  night, 
to  Berwick.  The  whole  country  was  quickly  roused, 
and  next  day  he  was  arrested  and  carried  to  the  Jed- 
burgh jail.  He  was  tried  and  condemned  to  die  on  the 
spot  where  the  fearful  crime  was  committed.  Thou- 
sands came  to  witness  the  execution.  I  was  in  that 
crowd.  At  a  turn  of  the  road  I  was  within  a  few  feet 
of  him,  and  such  a  haggard  face  I  never  saw.  It  haunted 
me  for  many  a  year.  When  on  the  scaffold,  he  in  a 
loud  voice  that  was  heard  by  thousands  prayed  for 
mercy,  —  that  he  might  be  delivered  from  bloodguilti- 
ness, —  prayed  for  the  widows  whom  he  had  made  wid- 
ows, and  for  the  children  whom  he  had  made  fatherless. 
I  never  heard  such  earnest  pleading,  and  I  never  for- 
got it. 

"  The  poor  man  had  been  visited  by  several  clergymen, 
one  of  whom  preached  from  the  text,  *  It  is  a  faithful 
saying  and  worthy  of  all  acceptation,  that  Jesus  Christ 
came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners,  of  whom  I  am  the 
chief.'  This  made  a  deep  impression  on  his  mind,  and 
he  was  hopefully  converted.  The  lesson  I  learned 
from  Eob  Scott's  sad  story  never  has  been  forgotten. 
I  dreaded  the  taste,  or  even  the  touch,  of  the  insidious 
poison,  and  long  before  I  had  even  heard  of  a  temper- 
ance society  I  labored  to  save  my  young  friends  from 
the  use  of  ardent  spirits.  After  I  entered  into  business 
in  New  York,  many  of  the  Scottish  immigrants  on 
landing  called  on  me,  and  I  used  to  urge  them  to  sign 
at  once  the  temperance  pledge,  and  many  of  them  did 
so.  Others  declined,  and  alas !  many  went  to  the 
drunkard's  grave." 


138         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"  One  day  a  carriage  came  to  the  door  of  my  shop, 
and  a  lady  stepped  out,  and  came  up  to  me  and  took  me 
by  the  hand,  and  asked,  '  Do  you  not  know  me  ? '  I  said, 
'  No.'  '  You  and  I  were  schoolmates  :  don't  you  remem- 
ber Jean ? '     At  once  I  recognized  her.     She  was 

the  daughter  of  the  hardest  man  in  my  native  village. 
He  was  profane  and  intemperate,  and  his  poor  wife  and 
children  had  a  hard  time  with  him.  He  took  the  dead 
from  their  graves,  and  sold  them  to  the  surgeons  for 
dissection.  On  one  occasion  his  poor  wife  went  into 
the  barn  after  dark  and  touched  a  dead  man's  hand, 
and  she  became  a  raving  maniac.  She  was  sent  to  Bed- 
lam, where  she  died.  His  daughter  Jean  escaped  from 
her  miserable  home,  came  to  New  York,  and  after  some 
time  married  a  young  German  mechanic,  who  rose  to  be 
a  prosperous  merchant  in  a  large  city  in  the  interior, 
where  she  had  a  happy  home.  She  wanted  to  purchase 
McCheyne's  works  for  a  gift  to  a  friend.  While  I  was 
conversing  with  Jean,  a  miserable-looking  young  man 
entered  the  store.  He  had  neither  hat,  shoes,  nor  stock- 
ings. One  of  my  clerks  went  to  him  and  asked  him  to 
go  out ;  but  he  said  he  was  very  desirous  to  see  me.  I 
went  to  him  and  inquired  what  he  wanted.  He  told 
me  he  was  the  son  of  a  parish  minister  in  Scotland 
whom  I  well  knew,  and  that  he  was  starving  and  al- 
most naked.  While  I  was  talking  with  him,  an  elder 
of  our  church  entered,  and  I  asked  whether  he  could 
give  him  something  to  do.  He  employed  a  large  num- 
ber of  men,  and,  after  talking  with  him,  he  said,  '  Come 
to-morrow  morning  to  my  shop,  and  I  will  give  you 
something  to  do,'  and  gave  him  his  address.  The  young 
man  promised  to  go.  I  then  got  him  some  clothing,  and 
gave  him  money  to  get  underclothing,  and  he  left  me. 
Next  day  at  twelve  o'clock  the  elder  came  and  told  me 


SHARON  SPRINGS.  139 

that  the  poor  creature  had  not  come.  After  five  months 
he  came  again  in  as  bad  a  plight  as  before,  and  I  asked 
why  he  had  not  gone  to  the  shop  as  he  had  been  invited. 
He  said  he  could  not  pass  a  grog-shop  without  a  glass, 
and  he  went  in  and  drank  till  the  money  I  gave  him  was 
gone.  I  tried  to  reason  with  him,  told  him  he  had  a 
good  education  and  good  example  in  his  father's  house. 
He  said,  '  You  are  mistaken  ;  I  was  not  well  educated. 
We  had  whiskey  at  table  in  my  father's  house  every 
day,  and  I  learned  to  love  it  then.' 

"  Here  was  a  striking  contrast.  The  daughter  of  a 
wretched  father  and  the  son  of  a  leading  clergyman 
had  changed  places,  and  what  a  change !  How  many 
since  that  time  have  I  seen  swept  into  the  vortex  of 
destruction  by  this  horrid  vice !  0,  what  heaps  of 
slain  call  out  for  vengeance  on  us !  And  yet  the  giddy 
dance  of  death  goes  round." 

In  the  summer  of  1855  Mr.  Carter  went  for  the  first 
time  to  Sharon  Springs,  New  York.  In  this  place  he 
spent  six  summers,  attracting  there  relatives  and  friends 
till  there  was  often  a  party  of  sixty  or  seventy  which 
gravitated  round  him  as  a  centre.  The  society  was 
delightful.  There  were  always  a  good  many  clergymen 
in  the  house,  sometimes  eight  or  nine  at  a  time,  —  Eev. 
Drs.  Krebs,  Nicholas  Murray,  Cleveland,  and  his  own 
beloved  pastor  Dr.  McElroy ;  Mr.  Chauncey  Goodrich 
and  Prof.  0.  M.  Mitchell,  the  eminent  astronomer,  were 
friends  with  whom  he  there  had  most  delightful  com- 
munion. Archbishop  Hughes  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  was  there  one  summer,  and  they  had  much 
pleasant  intercourse  with  each  other,  talking  over 
things  ancient  and  modern.  They  found  much  com- 
mon ground,  but  did  not  hesitate  to  discuss  amicably 
controverted  points,  such  as  Pascal  and  the  Port  Eoy- 


140         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

alists.  They  both  regarded  Milton  and  Young  as  favor- 
ite poets,  and  were  drawn  together  by  a  fellow  feeling 
in  that  respect. 

A  short  time  before,  there  had  been  a  very  "ani- 
mated "  correspondence  between  the  Archbishop  and 
Dr.  Nicholas  Murray  (Kirwan)  in  the  public  press,  and 
it  was  rather  strange  that  they  should  be  spending 
some  weeks  at  the  same  hotel.  They  did  not  seek  each 
other's  society,  and  Dr.  Murray  was  a  wee  bit  scandal- 
ized that  Mr.  Carter  should  be  so  intimate  with  the 
prelate. 

When  Mr.  Carter  first  went  to  Sharon,  there  was  no 
church  in  the  place,  and  services  were  held  in  the  par- 
lors of  the  different  hotels.  He  became  a  sort  of  ruler 
in  the  synagogue,  arranging  that  such  services  should  be 
held  with  the  utmost  regularity  Sunday  morning  and 
evening,  seeing  that  the  chosen  parlor  was  got  ready, 
arranging  that  a  minister  should  always  be  provided, 
seating  the  congregation,  and  having  everything  done 
decently  and  in  order.  There  was  always  the  best  of 
preaching  from  some  of  the  most  prominent  clergymen 
in  the  country.  After  a  time  churches  were  built  and 
services  kept  up  the  year  round. 

While  at  Sharon,  in  June,  1859,  Mr.  Carter  received 
a  letter  from  Dr.  J.  H.  Thornwell  of  Columbia,  South 
Carolina,  with  whom  he  had  long  been  on  terms  of  in- 
timacy. It  gave  an  account  of  the  sudden  death  of  his 
daughter  on  the  eve  of  her  marriage.  The  letter  was  so 
remarkable  that  Professor  Mitchell  a.sked  to  be  allowed 
to  read  it  on  Sunday  evening  at  a  religious  service  in 
the  parlor  of  the  hotel.  Two  years  later  Dr  Thornwell 
and  Professor  Mitchell  were  prominent  leaders  in  the 
great  struggle  between  the  North  and  the  South.  Both 
passed  from  earth  in  the  heat  of  the  conflict,  and  met 


DR.   THORNWELL.  141 

in  the  better  country  where  all  is  peace.     Dr.  Thorn- 
well's  letter  is  as  follows :  — 

Theological  Seminary,  June  27,  1859. 
My  dear  Friend  :  — 

I  have  just  received  your  kind  and  cordial  letter  of  Chris- 
tian sympathy,  and  as  the  subject  is  one  upon  which  I  take 
a  melancholy  pleasure  in  dwelling,  I  proceed  at  once  to 
answer  your  tender  and  affectionate  inquiries.  You  may  re- 
member that  I  told  you  of  her  approaching  wedding.  She 
was  to  have  been  married  on  the  15th  instant,  to  a  young 
man  eminently  worthy  of  any  heart  or  any  hand.  I  reached 
home  on  the  morning  of  the  9th,  and  found  her  in  bed  with 
a  raging  fever.  She  had  then  been  sick  two  days.  Her 
symptoms  appeared  to  me  unfavorable,  and  I  called  in  two 
other  physicians.  The  next  day  I  became  alarmed,  and 
on  Friday  gave  her  to  understand  that  her  case  was  critical. 
She  was  not  at  all  disconcerted ;  she  assured  me  that  her 
peace  was  made  with  God ;  that  though  she  had  many  earthly 
ties,  and  some  of  them  very  tender,  there  was  nothing  that 
she  loved  in  comparison  with  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and 
nothing  that  she  was  not  ready  to  sacrifice  at  his  call.  She 
called  all  the  family  to  her  bedside,  united  in  prayer  with 
them,  and  gave  to  each  a  parting  benediction.  The  scene 
was  sublime  beyond  description.  To  see  a  young  girl, 
elegant,  accomplished,  and  highly  esteemed,  with  the  most 
flattering  prospects  in  life,  just  upon  the  eve  of  her  marriage 
with  one  whom  she  devotedly  loved,  resign  all  earthly  hopes 
and  schemes  and  joys  with  perfect  composure,  and  welcome 
death  as  the  voice  of  one  supremely  loved,  was  a  spectacle 
that  none  who  witnessed  can  ever  forget.  It  was  grand,  it 
was  even  awful.  It  impressed  some  who  were  in  the  room 
in  a  way  they  were  never  impressed  before,  and  I  felt  more 
like  adoring  God  for  the  wondrous  triumph  of  His  grace 
than  weeping  for  my  own  loss.  After  this  scene  she  rallied, 
and  the  next  day  the  physicians  thought  that  there  was  a  fair 


142  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

prospect  of  her  recovery.  When  it  was  announced  to  her 
that  she  might  yet  get  well,  she  said  that  she  wished  to  have 
no  choice  in  the  matter;  all  that  she  desired  was  that  God 
might  be  glorified,  whether  by  her  life  or  her  death.  For 
the  sake  of  others  she  might  desire  to  live,  but  upon  the 
whole  she  would  prefer,  if  it  was  the  Lord's  will,  to  depart 
and  be  with  Jesus.  She  spent  the  whole  day  in  listening  to 
the  Scriptures,  and  conversing  with  me  about  the  condition 
of  the  soul  after  death.  She  was  perfectly  calm  and  col- 
lected, and  what  she  said  was  the  deliberate  utterance  of 
faith,  and  not  the  language  of  excitement. 

Before  the  last  hour  came  she  had  a  momentary  conflict, 
but  gained  a  glorious  victory,  and  her  joys  were  irrepressible  ; 
she  threw  her  arms  around  my  neck,  and  told  me  that  her 
happiness  was  beyond  expression  ;  she  felt  the  presence  of 
Jesus,  and  rejoiced  in  him  with  joy  inexpressible  and  full  of 
glory.  It  was  a  glorious  death,  a  triumphal  procession. 
What  makes  the  whole  matter  more  consoling  is,  that  there 
had  been  for  months  a  marked  and  rapid  progress  in  divine 
things.  She  had  been  much  in  prayer,  and  as  a  proof  of  her 
intense  spirituality  she  has  left  behind  her  a  paper  contain- 
ing her  reflections  and  feelings  and  purposes  in  the  prospect 
of  her  marriage,  and  all  bespeak  the  condition  of  one  whose 
eye  was  single  to  the  glory  of  God.  It  is  a  pi'ecious  docu- 
ment, absolutely  amazing  for  her  years.  Two  days  before 
she  was  taken  sick,  she  had  been  on  a  visit  to  some  friend  in 
Sumter,  and  upon  her  return  spoke  to  her  mother  of  the 
delightful  communion  she  had  enjoyed  with  God  in  prayer. 
The  Master  was  evidently  maturing  her  for  Heaven.  The 
family  has  been  amazingly  sustained.  The  truth  is,  we  dare 
not  murmur.  The  grace  has  been  so  transcendent  that  it 
would  be  monstrous  to  repine.  I  feel  my  loss,  for  I  loved 
her  very  tenderly ;  but  I  bless  God  for  what  my  eyes  have 
seen,  and  my  ears  heard.  We  have  been  afraid  to  grieve, 
the  triumph  was  so  illustrious.  My  second  daughter  is 
a   professor  of   religion,  and  I  think  a  true  child  of  God. 


DR.   THORNWELL.  143 

My  boys  are  still  out  of  the  ark.  Pray  for  us,  my  dear 
friend,  especially  pray  that  I  may  have  no  unconverted  child. 
The  event  has  been  greatly  sanctified  to  me  and  my  wife. 
God  grant  that  we  may  never  grow  faint.  I  never  relax  my 
hold  upon  the  covenant.  Jesus  has  been  more  precious  to 
me  than  I  have  felt  him  for  a  long  time,  and  the  Gospel 
more  glorious.  Henceforth  I  am  bound,  I  trust,  for  eternity. 
I  want  to  live  only  for  the  glory  of  God.  Pray  for  me  and 
mine.  The  Lord  bless  you,  and  reward  you  for  your  kind 
and  Christian  sympathies. 

As  ever  yours, 

J.  H.  Thornwell. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

A  CAUSE  very  dear  to  Mr.  Carter's  heart  was  that 
of  the  Bible  Society.  He  writes  in  1884:  "In 
1856  I  was  elected  a  manager  of  the  American  Bible 
Society,  and  shortly  after  a  member  of  the  Committee 
of  Publication.  It  was  my  great  delight  to  meet 
with  the  noble  men  who  constituted  the  Board  of  the 
Society  at  that  time.  Most  of  them  were  silver-headed 
and  prominent  men.  Governor  Bradish  was  President 
of  the  Society,  and  was  a  most  graceful  presiding  officer. 
James  Lenox,  Dr.  Allen,  President  of  the  Girard  Col- 
lege, and  Dr.  S.  Wells  Williams,  have  since  occupied 
that  position.  The  work  of  the  Society  has  greatly 
increased.  Its  issues  amount  to  a  million  and  a  half 
volumes  annually.  I  have  been  on  the  Committee  of 
Publication  for  twenty-eight  years,  and  there  has  not 
been  the  slightest  friction  among  us.  One  after  an- 
other has  passed  away,  and  now  I  am  alone.  A  new 
generation  has  occupied  the  place  of  those  who  sat 
with  me  when  I  first  entered.  And  now  my  work  is 
nearly  done." 

In  1878  he  was  made  one  of  the  Vice-Presidents. 
He  was  regular  in  his  attendance  at  the  meetings  of 
his  committee,  until  the  very  last  months  of  his  life. 
It  was  often  remarked  by  him,  with  great  pleasure, 
that  there  were  as  many  Bibles  printed  in  three  years 
of  the  present  decade  as  were  made  in  the  first  eigh- 
teen centuries  of  the  Christian  era. 


PRINCETON  SEMINARY.  145 

One  of  the  closest  friendships  of  his  life  was  with 
another  of  the  Vice-Presidents  of  the  Society,  A.  li. 
Walsh,  Esq.,  who  was  also  an  honored  elder  in  the 
Scotch  Church.  He  was  a  man  of  nohle  and  generous 
character,  "graced  with  polished  manners  and  fine 
sense,"  a  thorough  Christian  gentleman.  Their  friend- 
ship was  so  close  that  they  were  often  compared  to 
David  and  Jonathan.  Their  duties  in  the  eldership 
and  other  Christian  work  often  brought  them  together 
several  times  a  week,  and  the  children  of  both  families 
were  often  amused  to  note  that  after  a  meeting  Mr. 
Walsh  would  accompany  Mr.  Carter  to  his  door,  and 
then  Mr.  Carter  would  see  Mr.  Walsh  home,  and  then 
both  would  walk  to  a  corner  half-way  between  the  two 
houses,  and  stand  talking  together  until  they  reached 
a  point  where  it  seemed  possible  to  them  to  break  off 
their  conversation.  It  was  a  great  trial  to  both  when 
Mr.  Walsh  removed,  in  his  last  days,  to  Stamford, 
Connecticut,  but  even  separation  did  not  cool  their 
friendship,  which  burned  with  unabated  ardor  till 
death  parted  them. 

William  Henry  Green,  D.D.,  of  Princeton,  writes  :  — 

"  Mr.  Carter  was  elected  by  the  General  Assembly  in 
1856  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  Princeton 
Seminary,  and  he  served  faithfully  in  that  capacity  to  the 
end  of  his  life.  It  was  part  of  his  duty  to  attend  the  ex- 
aminations from  time  to  time.  He  always  manifested  a 
deep  interest  in  the  Seminary,  even  after  his  physical  weak- 
ness prevented  him  from  attending  the  meetings  of  the 
Board.  He  was  at  the  time  of  his  death  the  oldest  member 
of  the  Board,  and  the  one  who  had  been  longest  in  service. 
He  established  three  prizes  for  excellence  in  Old  Testament 
studies,  which  have  been  given  annually  since  1879  to  the 
three  students  of  the  Seminary  who  prepared  the  best  theses 

on  some  assigned  subject. 

10 


146  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

"  Let  me  take  this  opportunity  to  express  my  personal 
grief,  as  well  as  my  deep  sense  of  the  loss  sustained  by  this 
Seminary  and  by  the  Church  at  large  in  his  death.  He  was 
for  thirty-three  years  a  Director  of  this  Seminary,  and  there 
was  no  one  whose  counsel  and  friendship  were  more  highly 
prized.  His  wide  influence  as  a  Christian  publisher  has 
been  extensively  and  powerfully  felt  for  good,  and  will  con- 
tinue long  after  he  has  entered  upon  his  reward.  In  all  the 
spheres  of  Christian  evangelical  effort  in  which  he  held  so 
conspicuous  a  place  he  will  be  sadly  missed.  My  own  past 
intercourse  with  him  is  one  of  the  delightful  memories 
which  I  shall  continue  to  cherish." 

Another  member  of  the  Board,  Eev.  W.  C.  Cattell, 
D.D.,  thus  writes  :  — 

*'  Yes,  I  loved  and  honored  Robert  Carter.  It  is  a  delight 
to  me  to  recall  his  precious  memory.  Though  much  younger 
than  he  I  was  next  him  in  seniority  among  the  directors  of 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary.  We  were  associated  in  the 
Board  nearly  thirty  years.  It  was  always  like  a  benediction 
to  look  upon  his  face,  dear  precious  blessed  man.  Few  men 
have  I  loved  so  much,  and  so  did  all  love  him  who  knew 
him." 

Mr.  Carter  was  one  of  the  founders,  in  1857,  of  the 
New  York  Sabbath  Committee,  a  society  which  has 
done  a  great  work  for  the  consecration  of  our  Chris- 
tian Sabbath.  For  years  he  did  yeoman's  service  in 
this  admirable  institution,  and  at  his  death  left  but 
one  survivor  of  the  original  Committee. 

Indeed,  it  would  be  a  difficult  matter  to  give  a  list 
of  all  the  benevolent  institutions  to  which  he  belonged. 
A  year  or  two  before  his  death,  one  of  his  grandchil- 
dren jocosely  remarked,  "  It  seems  to  me  Grandpa  at- 
tends an  annual  meeting  of  some  society  every  week 


EUROPE   IN   1861.  147 

ill  his  life."  He  gave  to  each  earnest  thought  and  lib- 
eral hand.  Giving  was  to  him  one  of  the  sweetest 
pleasures  in  life.  He  valued  money,  not  for  what  it 
was,  but  for  what  it  could  do.  He  had  to  be  a  very- 
undeserving  petitioner  whom  he  refused.  The  wonder 
was  that  he  could  grow  in  wealth,  but  ''  there  is  that 
scattereth  and  yet  increaseth."  In  his  business,  it  was 
often  said  of  him  that  he  would  rather  give  away  his 
books  than  sell  them,  and  only  those  who  were  con- 
stantly with  him  knew  how  perpetual  was  the  giving 
out.  It  was  no  bare  gift  that  he  gave,  for  the  giver 
always  went  with  it  in  kindly  love  and  sympathy. 
Those  who  saw  what  he  gave  would  suppose  he  was 
a  man  of  great  wealth;  those  who  noticed  his  man- 
ner of  living  would  have  thought  him  a  man  in  lim- 
ited circumstances,  though  he  was  always  ready  for 
any  necessary  expense.  He  was  never  of  those  who 
think  that  generosity  consists  in  spending  liberally  on 
one's  self. 

In  1861  his  two  elder  sons  graduated  from  Princeton 
Seminary.  As  the  eldest  was  just  twenty-two,  he  felt 
that  they  were  too  young  to  take  up  a  pastoral  charge, 
so  he  decided  to  take  all  his  family  to  Europe,  where 
they  travelled  for  fifteen  months.  It  was  a  most  de- 
lightful tour,  the  only  drawbacks  being  the  constant 
anxiety  caused  by  the  war  of  the  Eebellion  in  America, 
news  of  which  was  eagerly  watched  for,  and  the  severe 
illness  of  his  eldest  son  in  Germany  from  Syrian  fever, 
contracted  while  on  a  tour  through  the  Holy  Land. 
Several  months  of  1861  were  spent  in  Scotland,  where 
his  sons  attended  classes  at  the  Divinity  Schools  of  the 
Free  and  United  Presbyterian  Churches  in  Edinburgh. 
On  this  trip  Mr.  Carter  had  even  more  delightful  inter- 
course than  before  with  clerical  and  other  friends  in 


148         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Ireland  and  Scotland.  Dr.  Hall  in  Dublin,  Dr.  Cooke 
and  Dr.  JMcCosh  in  Belfast,  Drs.  Macleod  and  Mac- 
duff in  Glasgow,  and  Drs.  Guthrie,  Candlish,  Cunning- 
ham, John  Brown,  M.D.,  and  many  others  in  Edinburgh, 
extended  the  most  cordial  hospitality,  and  did  every- 
thing that  was  possible  to  make  his  stay  among  them 
delightful.  A  large  circle  of  friends  gathered  about 
him  in  Glasgow  and  Edinburgh,  and  his  exceedingly 
social  nature  was  gratified  by  the  refined  and  intel- 
lectual society  of  the  Scottish  cities. 

The  family  arrived  in  Glasgow  on  a  Saturday,  and  on 
Sunday  morning  all  desired  to  hear  Dr.  Norman  Mac- 
leod. As  Mr.  Carter  was  not  very  sure  of  the  locality 
of  the  Barony  Church,  he  stopped  a  tall,  stout  gentle- 
man at  the  corner,  and  inquired  the  way.  He  was  be- 
ginning very  courteously  to  give  the  necessary  directions, 
when  Mr.  Carter  exclaimed,  "  Why,  Dr.  Macleod ! " 
"  Why,  Mr.  Carter ! "  It  was  indeed  the  great  preacher 
himself,  who  was  on  his  way  to  exchange  with  a  min- 
ister at  Kelvin  Grove;  so  if  the  party  had  not  thus 
accidentally  met  him,  they  would  have  had  their  long 
walk  to  the  Barony  Church  only  to  encounter  disap- 
pointment. They  turned  about  and  accompanied  Dr. 
Macleod  to  Kelvin  Grove,  where  they  heard  from  him 
a  sermon  he  had  preached  a  week  or  two  before  to  the 
Queen  at  Balmoral.  The  next  day  he  spent  the  entire 
morning  with  his  American  friend,  talking  over  matters 
of  Church  and  State  that  were  of  great  interest  to  all. 
After  this  they  met  repeatedly.  Dr.  Macleod  on  one 
occasion  coming  to  Edinburgh  on  purpose  to  spend  the 
day  with  Mr.  Carter.  On  another  occasion  Dr.  McCosh 
came  from  Ireland  for  the  same  purpose. 

There  was  no  one  in  Edinburgh  with  whom  Mr. 
Carter  had  so  much  delightful  intercourse  as  with  Dr. 


DR.   GUTHRIE.  149 

Guthrie.  His  wonderful  geniality,  his  extraordinary 
conversational  powers,  were  as  remarkable  as  his  great 
pulpit  eloquence.  His  cliurch  was  always  so  crowded 
that  it  was  impossible  for  strangers  to  get  admittance 
save  by  ticket,  but  Dr.  Guthrie  gave  Mr.  Carter  a  per- 
manent order  for  admission,  and  he  and  his  family  at- 
tended Free  St.  John's  more  than  any  other  church  in 
Edinburgh. 

Mr.  Carter  gives  the  following  account  of  a  delightful 
trip  on  the  Continent  with  Dr.  Guthrie's  family. 

"  In  August,  one  morning,  I  was  leaving  our  lodgings, 
when  I  saw  Dr.  Guthrie  and  his  son  David  approaching. 
They  said  they  were  going  to  the  Evangelical  Alliance 
in  Geneva  on  the  following  Monday,  and  had  come  to 
bid  me  good  by.  They  spread  their  map  on  my  table, 
and  showed  me  their  plan  and  route.  The  Doctor  then 
turned  to  me  and  asked,  '  Can  you  go  with  us  ? '  My 
wife  joined  them  in  urging  me  to  go,  and  I  went.  We 
reached  Paris  on  Tuesday  evening.  There  were  ten  of 
us  in  all ;  most  of  them  were  of  Dr.  Guthrie's  family. 
A  more  delightfail  company  1  never  met.  We  were 
seated  at  the  tea-table  in  the  hotel,  when  a  gentleman 
came  behind  me  and  tapped  me  on  the  shoulder.  It 
was  Dr.  Macduff,  author  of  many  delightful  books 
which  I  had  published.  I  looked  at  him,  and  he  said, 
'  My  wife  is  here,  and  would  like  to  see  you.'  He 
showed  me  his  route,  and  I  said  I  would  diverge  from 
the  Guthrie  plan  for  two  or  three  days  and  go  with  him. 
Dr.  Burns,  brother  of  Mrs.  Guthrie,  and  late  Moderator 
of  the  General  Assembly,  also  went  with  us,  as  it  would 
give  us  an  opportunity  of  seeing  Basle  and  Zurich.  I 
had  thus  the  pleasure  of  becoming  better  acquainted 
with  Dr.  Macduff,  who  proved  a  most  charming  com- 
panion.   After  parting  from  him  we  rejoined  the  Guthrie 


150  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

party,  and  spent  a  night  at  Chur,  the  birthplace  of  Dr. 
SchaflF.  We  then  crossed  the  Alps  by  the  Splugen  Pass, 
and  made  our  way  to  Milan,  where  we  saw  the  finest 
Gothic  cathedral  in  the  world.  Thence  we  went  to 
Venice,  and  the  Doctor  selected  for  our  guide  an  Ameri- 
can who  had  been  our  representative  in  Trieste,  but 
had  been  displaced,  and  as  war  was  raging  at  home  he 
went  to  Venice  to  act  as  guide  to  English  and  American 
travellers.  We  were  so  much  pleased  with  him,  and 
felt  so  much  sympathy  with  him,  that  on  parting  we 
made  up  a  purse  for  him.  In  our  return  to  Switzerland 
we  had  passed  the  night  in  a  diligence,  and  at  break  of 
day  we  alighted  to  walk  a  little.  There  were  some 
Italians  —  Waldenses  going  to  the  Alliance  —  pacing 
along  with  us.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Re  veil  was  among  them, 
and  as  I  had  met  him  in  New  York  we  were  very  glad 
to  meet  again.  He  was  engaged  at  that  time  in  print- 
ing the  Italian  Bible,  and  the  American  Bible  Society 
furnished  the  money  for  it.  As  I  was  on  the  Publi- 
cation Committee  of  the  Bible  Society  he  was  glad  to 
report  progress. 

"  At  the  meeting  in  Geneva  I  met  C^sar  Malan,  who 
kissed  me  on  both  cheeks.  I  invited  him  to  dine  with 
me,  and  he  gave  some  account  of  his  work.  He  was 
old,  and  much  discouraged.  I  felt  a  warm  sympathy 
with  him.  He  did  a  good  work.  Merle  d'Aubign^, 
whose  History  I  had  reprinted,  received  me  also  very 
afifectionately,  and  introduced  me  to  F.  W.  Krummacher, 
for  whom  he  acted  as  interpreter.  One  evening  Dr. 
Guthrie  delivered  a  lecture,  and  at  the  close  his  daugh- 
ter said  to  me,  '  There  are  two  daughters  of  Edward 
Bickersteth  here  who  have  been  parted  from  their  es- 
cort. I  will  introduce  you  to  them.  Perhaps  you  will 
be  pleased  to  accompany  them  to  the  entertainment  in 


EVANGELICAL  ALLIANCE.  151 

the  Park.'  'I  shall  be  delighted  to  do  so.'  I  found 
them  charming  company.  They  gave  me  an  account 
of  the  last  hours  of  their  dear  father,  whom  I  us$d  to 
think  of  as  the  beloved  disciple,  so  meek,  so  gentle,  so 
lovely.  I  little  thought  that  a  few  years  later  I  should 
publish  *  Yesterday,  To-day,  and  Forever,'  the  delightful 
work  of  their  brother,  and  one  of  the  most  popular  vol- 
umes I  have  ever  issued.  I  was  glad  to  be  introduced 
to  Tholuck,  the  Monods,  and  other  celebrities  of  France 
and  Germany.  Dr.  Baird  was  the  only  American  there 
that  was  with  me  at  the  great  Evangelical  Alliance 
meeting  in  London  in  1846,  fifteen  years  before. 

"After  the  meeting,  our  party  went  to  Visp,  the  Gor- 
ner  Grat,  and  Zermatt.  We  had  a  snowball  party  on  the 
Gorner  Grat,  10,000  feet  high,  while  the  valleys  below 
were  excessively  hot.  We  saw  the  sun  set  on  Monte 
Rosa,  and  the  scene  around  was  the  most  magnificent  I 
ever  saw.  The  good  Doctor  had  some  of  the  most  sub- 
lime bursts  of  eloquence  amid  those  glorious  mountains. 
O,  it  was  good  indeed  to  be  with  him !" 

Mr.  Carter  used  often  to  relate  the  following  inci- 
dents of  this  trip. 

On  one  occasion  Dr.  Guthrie  was  about  to  cross  a 
little  foot-bridge  which  he  thought  of  doubtful  sound- 
ness. He  had  forgotten  the  German  for  "  safe,"  so  he 
asked  the  guide  in  French,  but  he  shook  his  head  ;  then 
he  asked  him  in  English,  with  no  better  success.  "  I  am 
going  to  try  him  with  Scotch,"  exclaimed  the  Doctor. 
"  Is 't  siccar,  man  ? "  "  Ah,  ja,  ja,  siccar ! "  responded  he 
at  once. 

When  they  were  crossing  the  Austrian  frontier  in 
going  to  Venice,  the  official  who  examined  the  passports 
was  puzzled  by  Dr.  Guthrie's,  on  which  were  included 
the   names  of  his  party  of  eight,  and,  after  trying  in 


152         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

vain  to  comprehend  it,  he  lost  patience,  and  threw  it  on 
the  ground.  Dr.  Guthrie  drew  himself  up  to  the  full 
height  of  his  commanding  figure,  and,  shaking  his  long 
forefinger  at  the  man,  he  exclaimed,  "  If  you  treat  me 
with  indignity,  Queen  Victoria  with  a  hundred  thousand 
men  will  put  me  right."  The  man  did  not  understand 
a  word  that  was  said,  but  he  could  appreciate  the  atti- 
tude and  gesture  of  the  great  orator,  and  he  stooped 
very  meekly  and  picked  up  the  passport ;  the  Guthrie 
party  was  set  in  a  row,  and  the  individuals  pointed  out 
in  connection  with  their  names  on  the  paper,  and  the 
matter  was  soon  straightened  out.  "  Now,  Mr.  Carter, 
it 's  your  turn.  You  '11  have  to  stand  fire,"  cried  the 
Doctor.  But  Mr.  Carter  had  no  one  but  himself  on  the 
passport,  so  that  there  was  no  complication.  The  offi- 
cial glanced  at  it,  attached  his  vise,  and  handed  it  back 
with  a  polite  bow.  "What's  the  meaning  of  this?" 
exclaimed  Dr.  Guthrie.  "  Oh,"  said  Mr.  Carter,  "  my 
honest  face  always  carries  me  through." 
To  return  to  Mr.  Carter's  own  narrative  :  — 
"  After  our  return  to  Edinburgh  I  invited  Dr.  Guthrie 
and  his  family  to  tea.  When  the  door  bell  rang,  I  went 
to  the  head  of  the  stairs  to  receive  the  company.  After 
entering  the  door.  Dr.  Guthrie  looked  up  to  where  I 
stood,  and  said,  '  I  have  brought  you  an  old  friend 
whom  you  will  be  glad  to  see.  Principal  Cunningham.' 
The  latter  had  just  returned  to  the  city  that  day,  and 
had  gone  to  see  Dr.  Guthrie,  who  told  him,  '  We  are 
going  to  Mr.  Carter's  to-night;  will  you  go  with  us?' 
That  was  the  most  delightful  evening  I  spent  in  Edin- 
burgh. The  feast  of  reason  and  the  flow  of  soul  enrap- 
tured us  all.  We  remember  it  the  more  vividly,  as  it 
was  the  last  time  we  saw  Dr.  Cunningham  in  good 
health.     He  called  on  me  afterwards,  but  he  was   un- 


DR.  JOHN  BROWN.  153 

strung  and  not  like  himself.  A  few  days  later  I  saw 
him  at  his  house,  but  he  was  very  low.  I  was  there 
again,  but  did  not  see  him.  He  was  within  ten  hours 
of  his  last.  He  was  an  instrument  of  great  good  to  his 
beloved  country. 

"One  of  the  most  interesting  friends  I  met  at  this 
time  was  the  gifted  John  Brown,  the  author  of  '  Rab 
and  his  Friends.'  He  took  me  into  some  of  the 
queerest  nooks  of  the  Old  Town,  and  threw  a  halo 
around  them  by  his  illustrations  of  '  The  Heart  of 
Midlothian,'  old  Davie  Deans  and  his  daughter  Jeanie, 
Holyrood,  the  Castle,  and  other  scenes  famous  in  an- 
cient story.  He  took  me  to  the  home  of  his  vener- 
able father,  Eev.  Dr.  John  Brown  of  Edinburgh,  who 
had  recently  passed  away,  and  showed  me  his  valu- 
able library,  which  was  to  be  given  to  the  Theological 
Seminary  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Church.  He  took 
up  an  old  Greek  Testament,  and  told  me  the  story 
connected  with  it.  His  ancestor,  John  Brown  of  Had- 
dington, —  one  of  the  fathers  of  the  Secession  Church, 
the  author  of  the  Concordance  that  bears  his  name,  and 
many  other  useful  works,  not  the  least  the  Catechism 
which  has  been  studied  by  tens  of  thousands  of  children 
in  Scotland  and  America,  and  the  Self-interpreting 
Bible,  which  is  yet  an  heirloom  in  many  Scottish  fami- 
lies,—  was  in  early  years  a  shepherd  among  the  uplands 
of  Scotland.  He  was  fond  of  study,  and  in  his  spare 
hours  had  acquired  some  knowledge  of  Latin  and  Greek. 
He  was  anxious  to  procure  a  Greek  Testament,  and  got 
some  one  to  take  his  place  for  a  day  while  he  walked 
twenty-four  miles  to  a  town  where  he  knew  there  was 
a  bookstore.  He  walked  all  night,  and  reached  the 
place  where  the  store  was,  and  was  standing  in  front  of 
it  when  the  owner  came  and  opened  the  door.     He  had 


154         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

his  shepherd  plaid  around  him,  and  looked  very  unlike 
a  student.  He  inquired  for  a  Greek  Testament.  He 
was  asked  if  he  wanted  it  for  himself,  and  he  answered, 
'  Yes.'  '  If  you  will  read  me  a  verse  or  two,  I  will  give 
you  the  book  for  nothing.'  He  read  and  translated,  and 
the  astonished  bookseller  gave  him  the  book.  Mr. 
Brown  told  me  that  there  were  six  John  Browns,  all 
eldest  sons,  in  regular  succession,  he  being  the  fifth,  and 
his  son  the  sixth.  The  first  was  a  custom  weaver,  and 
from  him  had  descended  a  noble  line  of  illustrious 
men.  When  I  was  leaving  Edinburgh,  John  Brown 
was  one  of  the  last  from  whom  I  parted.  A  short  time 
before  his  death,  he  sent  me  a  loving  message  through 
my  dear  friend,  Dr.  Cuyler,  who  spent  some  happy 
hours  with  him. 

"  There  were  two  brothers,  William  and  David  Dick- 
son, of  whom  I  have  many  pleasant  memories.  David 
was  the  City  Treasurer  of  Edinburgh.  He  reminded 
me  often  of  Apollos  R.  Wetmore,  of  New  York.  His 
life  was  consecrated  to  the  good  of  his  fellow  men.  He 
took  me  with  him  to  the  Magdalen  Asylum,  which  he 
visited  weekly.  I  addressed  the  poor  women  a  number 
of  weeks  in  succession.  I  never  saw  a  more  attentive 
audience.  They  were  melted  to  tears.  Such  weeping 
overcame  me,  and  I  wept  with  them.  We  implored  the 
blessing  from  on  high,  and  it  came.  The  dear  Lord 
sought  the  lost,  and  found  them  there.  At  New  Year 
the  city  authorities  gave  them  a  supper,  to  which  I 
was  invited.  I  addressed  them  very  briefly,  but  as  I 
was  about  to  leave  Edinburgh  it  was  a  parting  address. 
After  I  sat  down,  I  whispered  to  Mr.  Dickson  that  I 
wished  to  retire.  He  said  he  would  accompany  me. 
When  we  reached  the  door  I  looked  back  and  made  a 
bow  to  them.     They  involuntarily  rose  in  a  mass  and 


IN   SCOTLAND.  155 

made  a  courtesy.  It  was  a  touching  sight,  and  it  was 
the  last.  After  my  return  to  New  York  I  received  a 
letter  from  them  signed  by  all  save  five,  whose  names 
were  written  for  them  by  the  matron,  thanking  me  for 
my  interest  in  them.  A  letter  came  also,  asking  me  if 
I  could  find  Christian  homes  for  them  in  our  city. 
There  had  been  a  great  work  of  grace  there,  and  they 
were  anxious  to  save  the  poor  women  from  falling  back 
into  their  old  ways.  I  advised  them  to  send  them  to 
Canada,  and  secure  to  them  homes  among  the  Scotch 
farmers  there.  They  did  so,  and  the  result  was  most 
favorable.  Many  were  plucked  as  brands  from  the 
burning." 

Mr.  Carter  spent  a  month  in  his  beloved  Earlston, 
the  place  of  his  birth,  and  greatly  enjoyed  reviving  old 
scenes  and  memories.  He  inquired  of  his  old  weaver 
friend  what  had  become  of  the  set  of  Eollin  with 
which  he  had  the  adventure  with  the  mad  dog.  He 
said  that  he  would  gladly  have  given  him  the  book,  but 
he  had  parted  with  it  only  the  year  before.  A  neigh- 
bor's family  had  gone  to  Australia,  and  he  had  given 
them  Ptollin  to  beguile  the  tedium  of  the  long  voyage. 
Mr.  Carter  was  greatly  disappointed,  as  he  would  have 
valued  the  old  book  very  highly. 

Mr.  Carter's  sons  preached  in  the  church  of  their 
forefathers.  He  greatly  enjoyed  the  beautiful  drives 
in  lovely  Berwickshire  and  the  neighboring  counties. 
One  day  he  went  to  Kelso  and  saw  Mrs.  Duncan,  his 
dear  old  friend.  He  also  called  on  Dr.  Horatius  Bo- 
nar,  but  was  told  that  Dr.  Andrew  Bonar  was  on  a 
visit  to  his  brother,  and  the  two  had  gone  to  spend 
the  day  at  Flodden  Field;  so  he  missed  seeing  them 
together,  though  he  saw  both  afterwards  in  Glasgow 
and  Edinburgh. 


156  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

In  October,  two  delightful  trips  were  made  to  the 
Scottish  Highlands  and  English  Lakes.  A  Sunday  was 
spent  near  Balmoral,  where  the  family  attended  service 
at  Crathie,  in  the  church  in  which  the  Queen  worships 
when  at  the  Highlands.  They  were  seated  in  the  gal- 
lery directly  opposite  the  royal  party,  which  consisted 
of  the  Queen  and  Prince  Albert,  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
Princess  Alice  with  her  betrothed  Prince  Louis  of 
Hesse,  the  Duke  of  Argyle,  and  a  number  of  distin- 
guished men.  Dr.  Stuart  of  St.  Andrew's  Church, 
Edinburgh,  preached.  Just  as  the  service  began,  he 
found  to  his  dismay  that  he  had  left  his  manuscript 
at  his  lodgings,  and  was  obliged  to  preach  a  discourse 
which  he  had  recently  given  to  his  own  people,  and 
which  was  fresh  in  his  mind.  Tt  was  a  very  earnest 
sermon  on  "  Prepare  to  meet  thy  God,"  and  so  impressed 
the  mind  of  Prince  Albert  that  he  asked  the  preacher 
to  lend  him  the  manuscript,  that  he  might  read  it  over. 
This  was  but  a  short  time  before  the  Prince's  death. 
A  few  weeks  later,  Mr.  Carter  saw  him  lay  the  foun- 
dation of  a  new  post  office  in  Edinburgh  in  a  severe 
storm,  in  which  he  caught  the  cold  that  led  to  his 
death. 

About  this  time  occurred  the  Trent  affair,  which  at 
one  time  seriously  threatened  a  war  between  England 
and  America.  Some  of  Mr.  Carter's  Scotch  friends 
were  a  good  deal  shocked  to  hear  him  declare  that,  dear 
as  was  the  land  of  his  birth,  the  land  of  his  adoption 
claimed  his  allegiance,  and  in  case  of  war  he  must  im- 
mediately return  to  America.  He  tried  in  every  way 
to  study  the  things  that  make  for  peace,  to  pour  oil  on 
the  troubled  waters.  At  several  public  meetings  he 
pleaded  with  the  Christian  people  to  use  their  influ- 
ence to  preserve  the  peace  between  Christian  nations. 


PROFESSOR   MITCHELL.  157 

On  one  such  occasion  the  whole  audience  rose  to  their 
feet,  exclaiming,  "  No  war  with  America."  Dr.  Nor- 
man Macleod  wrote  a  paper  for  one  of  the  magazines 
in  which  he  urged  a  peace  policy,  and  shortly  after 
showed  Mr.  Carter  a  note  from  the  Queen's  secretary, 
signed  by  her  Majesty,  in  which  she  expressed  her 
pleasure  at  the  tone  of  the  article. 

On  New  Year's  day,  1862,  Mr,  Carter  was  invited  to 
address  Dr.  Guthrie's  ragged  schools  at  their  festival 
He  was  in  the  midst  of  his  speech,  and  was  giving  an 
account  of  the  career  of  his  friend,  Gen.  0.  M.  Mitchell, 
the  distinguished  astronomer,  when  Dr.  Guthrie  himself 
entered  the  hall,  and  was  received  by  the  children 
with  heartfelt  applause.  Dr.  Hanna,  colleague  of  Dr. 
Guthrie  and  son-in-law  and  biographer  of  Dr.  Chal- 
mers, whispered,  "  Mr.  Carter,  I  wish  you  would  begin 
that  story  over  again,  I  want  Dr.  Guthrie  to  hear  it." 
The  story  is  given  here  as  Mr.  Carter  told  it. 

"  In  the  summer  of  1860  I  visited  Sharon  Springs. 
One  of  the  first  to  welcome  me  was  a  bright,  noble 
gentleman,  whom  I  knew  by  reputation,  though  I  had 
never  spoken  to  him  before.  We  took  a  walk  into  the 
woods  together,  and  had  a  delightful  conversation. 
While  we  were  gazing  at  the  lovely  scene  before  us, 
he  turned  to  me  and  said,  '  Could  we  not  have  a  daily 
prayer  meeting  here  ? '  I  said  I  would  be  glad  if  we 
could.  After  discussing  this  matter  for  some  time,  we 
descended  the  hill  and  met  some  of  the  visitors,  to 
whom  we  spoke  of  our  plan ;  but  the  bathing  interfered 
with  it,  and  we  had  to  give  it  up.  This  talk  drew  me  to 
him  tenderly,  and  I  found  a  kindred  spirit  with  whom 
I  could  commune  lovingly.  One  evening  we  withdrew 
into  a  quiet  place,  where  he  gave  me  his  history.  I 
shall  give  it  as  nearly  as  I  can  in  his  own  words. 


158         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"  I  was  bom  in  Kentucky.  My  father  died  before  I 
was  three  years  old,  and  my  mother  when  I  was  seven. 
To  her  I  owe  much,  though  she  was  taken  so  early  from 
me.  Some  friends  took  me  to  Central  Ohio  and  inden- 
tured me  to  a  saddler  to  learn  his  trade.  I  had  to 
split  the  wood,  to  kindle  the  fire,  to  cook  the  victuals, 
to  wash  the  dishes,  to  sweep  the  hou.se,  and  do  every- 
thing that  was  needed.  I  had  little  time  to  learn  the 
trade.  But  as  I  was  a  poor  orphan,  I  bore  all  patiently 
and  did  the  best  I  could.  One  day  the  mistress  said 
to  me,  '  Go  and  split  the  wood  for  the  fire  in  the  morn- 
ing.' I  did  so,  and  returned.  '  Did  I  not  tell  you  to 
go  and  split  the  wood  ? '  she  said.  '  Yes,  ma'am,  and  I 
have  done  it.'  '  You  have  not  done  it,'  she  said.  I  left 
the  room  and  went  into  the  shop,  and  said,  '  I  am  going 
to  leave  you,  sir.'  'What's  the  matter?'  'I  could 
live  very  happily  with  you,  sir,  but  I  cannot  live  with 
mistress.  She  has  charged  me  with  lying.  My  dear 
mother  taught  me  never  to  be  so  mean  as  to  tell  a  lie.' 
'  Well,  go,'  said  he,  '  you  will  soon  be  back.'  1  went  to 
my  room,  tied  my  little  all  in  my  handkerchief,  and 
went  out  into  the  street.  I  saw  at  a  little  distance  a 
man  with  a  team.  I  went  up  to  him,  and  asked  where 
he  was  going.  '  To  Cincinnati,'  said  he.  '  Will  you 
take  me  with  you  ? '  '  You  cannot  go,'  said  he ;  '  on 
the  corduroy  roads  you  would  be  shaken  to  pieces.' 
'  If  you  will  take  me,  I  will  go.  I  will  ride  the  off 
horse,  will  run  errands,  and  do  anything  I  can.'  '  Well, 
come  along.'  We  were  five  days  on  the  road;  but  he 
was  kind,  and  aided  me  when  we  reached  our  destina- 
tion in  finding  a  good  home,  and  work  which  I  could 
do.  The  people  with  whom  I  lived  were  poor,  but  kind, 
and  I  was  happy.  After  the  labors  of  the  day  I  used 
to  lie  down  on  the  hearth,  knock  the  nose  off  a  pine 
log,  and  read  and  study. 


PROFESSOR  MITCHELL.  159 

"There  was  a  gentleman  near  us  who  took  some 
notice  of  me,  took  me  to  his  house,  and  showed  me 
his  library.  How  delighted  I  was  to  see  so  many  fine 
books  !  He  asked  me  to  take  one  and  read  it,  and 
come  back  and  take  another.  This  opened  a  new 
door  to  me.  I  began  to  study  mathematics.  I  drew 
my  diagrams  on  the  hearth,  and  worked  them  out, 
and  went  on  till  I  learned  a  great  deal.  My  good 
friend  watched  me  lovingly,  and  every  now  and  then 
examined  me  and  gave  me  encouragement.  One  day 
he  said  to  me,  '  How  would  you  like  to  go  to  West 
Point  in  the  State  of  New  York,  where  young  men 
are  educated  at  their  country's  expense  to  do  service 
afterwards  ? '  I  asked  him  whether  I  was  prepared 
to  go  there,  and  he  answered,  '  Yes.'  I  sewed  a  piece 
of  linen  and  made  a  knapsack  into  which  I  put  my 
clothes,  got  my  credentials,  and  started  for  Sandusky, 
two  hundred  miles  off.  I  walked  part  of  the  way, 
sometimes  got  a  ride,  and  at  length  reached  the  lake. 
A  steamer  was  up,  as  they  said,  and  I  went  on  board 
and  asked  the  captain  if  he  would  take  me  to  Buf- 
falo. He  told  me  what  the  fare  was.  *  But,'  I  said,  '  I 
have  no  money.'  '  Then  you  cannot  go.'  I  answered, 
'  The  weather  is  fine,  I  can  sleep  on  deck,  and  I  will 
help  in  kindling  fires  or  doing  anything  else.'  He 
took  me.  This  was  in  1825.  The  Erie  Canal  was  not 
quite  finished.  I  walked  one  hundred  miles  to  a  point 
where  boats  were  running.  I  went  to  a  boat  and 
asked  the  captain  to  take  me  to  Albany.  He  told  me 
the  fare,  but  I  said  to  him,  '  I  will  run  errands,  help  the 
cook,  and  do  anything  else  I  can.'  He  took  me,  and 
treated  me  kindly,  and  when  we  were  approaching 
Albany  I  said  to  him,  *  You  have  been  very  kind ;  I 
will  show  what  my  business  is  here.'     I  had  sewed  my 


160         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

credentials  on  the  inside  of  my  vest.  I  undid  the 
sewing  and  showed  him  them.  '  How  did  you  get 
them  ?  Our  most  influential  young  men  have  difficulty 
in  getting  such  appointments.'  I  gave  him  my  story. 
'  I  will  see  you  down  to  West  Point.'  He  took  me  to  a 
steamer,  and  paid  for  my  passage,  and  so  I  made  my 
way  there. 

"  It  was  a  hot  day  in  the  middle  of  summer  when  I 
climbed  the  hill  at  West  Point.  There  were  others 
on  the  same  errand,  but  they  were  genteelly  dressed 
and  rather  elbowed  me  out.  When  we  reached  the 
Academy,  there  was  a  door  standing  open,  and  a  num- 
ber of  us  entered  a  large  room.  With  my  knapsack 
on  my  back,  in  my  homespun  garb,  I  felt  a  little  de- 
pressed, and  sat  down  by  the  door.  A  patrol  paced 
backward  and  forward,  and  each  time  he  came  to  the 
door  he  gave  me  a  pleasant  look.  After  a  while  a  bell 
was  rung  and  my  fellow  travellers  rushed  out  to  din- 
ner. As  I  had  no  money  I  sat  still.  When  the  patrol 
came  up,  he  said,  '  Never  mind,  you  will  dine  with 
me  to-day.  I  shall  soon  be  through.'  Soon  after  he 
came  and  said,  '  Come  along.  We  shall  dine,  and  you 
will  sleep  with  me  to-night.'  He  was  a  fine,  generous 
youth,  the  son  of  Fulton,  who  ran  the  first  steamer  up 
the  Hudson  to  Albany,  and  he  proved  a  true  friend. 
After  dinner  he  said,  *  The  examination  begins  to- 
morrow; I  will  get  a  list  of  candidates.'  He  did  so, 
and  we  found  my  name  was  not  on  the  list  for  next 
day,  but  the  day  following.  '  That  is  good,'  he  says. 
'  You  will  see  to-morrow  how  the  examination  goes.' 
Next  day  he  took  me  to  a  room  where  there  were 
a  number  of  benches  and  a  platform  a  little  raised 
from  the  floor,  and,  behind,  a  blackboard  hanging  on 
the  wall.     I  thought  that  was  a  picture  turned  to  the 


PROFESSOR  MITCHELL.  161 

wall  to  keep  it  nice  ;  but  I  soon  found  out  its  purpose, 
and  thought  it  a  great  improvement  on  my  old  hearth- 
stone at  home.  I  took  a  back  seat,  and  soon  the 
benches  were  filled.  A  silver-headed  venerable  gentle- 
man came  and  took  his  seat  on  the  platform.  He  took 
a  roll,  and  called  a  name,  and  gave  a  problem  to  be 
solved.  A  young  man  went  forward  and  made  sad 
work.  Another  came,  and  did  better,  but  the  most  of 
them  signally  failed.  After  all  had  been  examined, 
the  gentleman  called  out  to  me,  '  What  is  your  name  ? ' 
I  told  him.  He  looked  at  the  list,  and  said,  '  Your 
turn  is  to-morrow,  but  it  may  spare  your  feelings  if 
I  give  you  something  to  do  now.'  He  gave  me  one 
problem,  and  then  another,  and  I  quickly  worked  them 
out,  and  then  he  asked  me,  '  What  school  did  you 
attend  ? '  'I  never  went  to  school,  sir,'  I  said.  '  Who 
taught  you  ? '  'I  never  was  taught,  sir.'  '  Where  did 
you  learn  what  you  have  been  doing  just  now  ?'  'I 
learned  lying  on  the  hearth  by  a  wood  fire  in  Ohio.' 
'  You  may  come  to-morrow.'  I  went  through  my  course 
there  with  credit  and  profit. 

"  But  I  must  pass  over  many  years.  I  became  a 
Professor  in  a  Western  college,  had  a  wife  and  six 
children,  had  a  good  library,  a  fine  apparatus,  and 
was  a  very  happy  man.  One  day  I  was  seated  in 
church,  when  I  heard  a  footfall  approaching  the 
door,  which  stood  open.  I  looked  out  and  saw  a 
friend  making  signs  that  I  was  wanted.  I  slipped 
quietly  out,  and,  behold,  the  college  building  was  in 
flames.  My  furniture,  books,  apparatus,  were  burned 
up.  I  had  recently  imported  some  apparatu.s,  from 
Europe,  and  owed  four  hundred  dollars.  In  sore  per- 
plexity, I  applied  to  a  friend  at  Cincinnati  for  a  loan  of 
two  hundred  dollars  to   take  me  to  Boston,  where  I 

11 


162  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

proposed  to  deliver  a  course  of  lectures  to  relieve  my 
perplexity.  He  was  ready  to  lend  me  the  money,  but 
doubted  the  wisdom  of  making  the  attempt.  I  took 
with  me  some  letters  of  introduction,  and  started  on  my 
way.  When  I  reached  Boston  and  delivered  my  let- 
ters, I  was  told  that  it  was  the  fag  end  of  the  season, 
that  the  people  were  sick  of  lecturing,  and  it  would  be 
in  vain  to  try.  I  asked  if  I  could  secure  a  lecture- 
room,  and  as  there  was  no  difficulty  about  that,  I  en- 
gaged a  room,  printed  my  advertisements,  posted  them 
myself,  and  quietly  awaited  the  issue.  When  the  even- 
ing came  I  went  to  the  hall,  but  there  was  not  a  person 
there.  I  looked  at  my  watch,  and  found  it  wanted 
twenty  minutes  of  the  time  appointed.  When  the 
hour  arrived  there  were  about  eighty  present.  I  had 
no  apparatus,  with  nothing  but  my  rod  in  my  hand, 
but  with  a  full  heart,  I  delivered  my  lecture.  Many 
of  my  hearers  at  the  close  rushed  up  to  me  and  said, 
'  If  you  will  lecture  on  Tuesday  night,  you  will  have  a 
full  room.'  Editors  of  the  leading  newspapers  were 
there,  who  pledged  themselves  to  do  me  justice,  and 
they  did.  On  the  Tuesday  night  the  crowd  was  so 
great,  that  I  had  to  walk  on  the  backs  of  the  pews 
between  the  heads  of  the  people  to  gain  the  desk.  I 
delivered  my  lectures  there,  and  repeated  them  in 
Lowell,  and  returned  home  with  two  thousand  dollars 
in  my  pocket. 

"  Here,"  said  Mr.  Carter,  "  the  narrative  of  my  hon- 
ored friend  ended.  I  tell  it  to  you  boys,  to  encourage 
you  to  faithful  efforts  to  improve  and  develop  your- 
selves. This  man,  who  rose  from  obscurity  entirely 
by  his  own  efforts,  with  the  blessing  of  God,  is  now 
one  of  the  most  learned  men  and  eloquent  orators  of 
our  dav,  holding  large    audiences  of   our   most  culti- 


ROME    EN    1862.  163 

vated  people  spellbound  while  he  discourses  to  them 
of  the  wonderful  facts  of  astronomy.  Of  late  a  fear- 
ful storm  of  war  has  swept  over  our  land.  The 
whole  country  has  been  moved  to  its  depths,  and  the 
brilliant  lecturer  is  now  leading  one  of  our  armies  to 
save  his  loved  land." 

A  year  later,  Mr.  Carter  had  to  add  to  this  narrative 
these  words :  "  Of  those  who  fell  in  that  strusr^le,  no 
nobler  spirit  winged  its  flight  to  the  home  where  there 
is  no  war  than  that  of  General  Mitchell.  What  a  scene 
must  have  opened  before  him  when  those  glorious  orbs 
of  light,  which  he  studied  so  ardently  here  below,  burst 
in  all  their  majesty  before  his  astonished  vision  1 "' 

The  winter  and  spring  of  1862  Mr.  Carter  spent  in 
Italy  with  his  wife  and  daughter,  while  his  sons  visited 
the  Holy  Land  and  Egypt.  Three  months  of  this  time 
he  spent  in  Eome,  where  he  fairly  revelled  in  the  scenes 
familiar  to  him  from  his  classical  studies.  Every  spot 
was  to  him  hallowed  ground,  from  its  associations  with 

"  The  dead  but  sceptred  sovereigns  who  still  rule 
Our  spirits  from  their  urns." 

He  was  perfectly  indefatigable  in  his  researches  into 
the  haunts  of  antiquity  and  verse,  and  was  ever  ready 
with  an  incident  or  a  quotation  for  each  scene. 

Mr.  Carter  writes  the  following  incident,  which  oc- 
curred at  this  time  :  — 

"One  afternoon  I  was  walking  up  the  street  that  leads 
to  the  Pincian  Hill,  the  great  promenade  of  the  Eomans, 
a  gentleman  whom  I  supposed  to  be  an  Englishman  was 
walking  alongside  of  me.  I  bowed  and  said, '  Good  day, 
sir.'  He  answered  courteously.  We  entered  into  con- 
versation. He  was  a  physician  who  had  spent  seven- 
teen years  in  Eome,  and  he  gave  me  a  rather  dark  picture 


164  LIFE   OF   ROBERT  CARTER. 

of  the  Papal  government.  When  we  readied  the  brow 
of  the  hill,  we  saw  seats  along  the  side  of  the  walk. 
On  one  of  these  there  were  three  gentlemen  dressed  as 
priests  of  high  rank,  and  as  we  approached  one  of  them 
rose  up  and  took  me  by  the  hand,  addressing  me  pleas- 
antly. It  was  Archbishop  Hughes,  and  I  was  glad  to 
meet  him,  as  it  was  the  first  year  of  our  sad  war,  and  I 
was  anxious  to  converse  with  him  about  the  state  of 
affairs.  We  had  a  long  and  interesting  conversation, 
and  when  I  bade  him  good-by,  I  turned  to  descend  the 
hill.  I  found  my  friend  the  physician  waiting  for  me, 
apparently  in  some  trouble.  'What  is  the  matter?'  I 
asked.  '  I  made  a  mistake,'  said  he,  '  and  have  been 
talking  too  freely.  1  heard  that  there  was  a  Scotchman 
here  who  had  gone  to  New  York  many  years  ago,  and 
had  married  a  Yankee  wife,  who  had  made  him  as  much 
a  Yankee  as  herself,  and  I  thought  you  were  the  man.' 
'  What  changed  your  opinion  ? '  I  asked.  '  He  was  not 
a  Catholic,  as  you  apparently  are.  Two  of  these  gentle- 
men were  Cardinals ;  the  third  one  who  talked  to  you 
I  did  not  know,  but  I  supposed  you  were  a  Catholic, 
else  he  would  not  have  received  you  so  cordially.'  I 
relieved  his  mind  by  assuring  him  that  I  was  the  man  he 
described,  and  as  good  a  Protestant  as  himself.  Bi.shop 
Hughes  did  receive  me  kindly.  He  told  me  he  could 
open  any  door  to  me  in  Rome,  and  would  be  glad  to 
do  anything  to  give  me  pleasure.  One  day,  after  a  long 
discussion  of  various  difficult  questions,  I  quoted  two 
lines, 

'  Not  greatly  to  discern,  not  much  to  know, 
Mankind  was  made  to  wonder  and  adore.' 

*  You  are  acquainted  with  my  old  friend,  Young,'  said 
he.  '  Yes,'  I  replied.  '  I  studied  Young's  Night 
Thoughts  by  the  firelight  till  I  made  large  portions 


ROME   IN   1862.  165 

of  them  my  own.'  He  told  me  he  did  the  same  when 
he  was  a  boy,  and  that  they  had  been  his  vade  mecum 
ever  since.  I  could  not  help  loving  the  man  who 
had  drunk  with  me  at  the  same  spring  in  life's  morn- 
ing. We  had  so  much  common  ground  on  which  to 
stand,  that  we  touched  little  on  those  points  in  which 
we  differed." 

There  was  not  much  civil  or  religious  liberty  at 
that  time  in  Eome.  There  was  no  Protestant  church 
allowed  within  the  walls.  There  was  a  very  ritual- 
istic Episcopal  church  outside  the  Porta  del  Popolo, 
and  just  inside  was  a  church  where  Cardinal  Man- 
ning preached  every  Sunday  afternoon.  It  was  a 
common  saying  among  the  English  residents  that  the 
high  church  rector  brought  them  to  the  gate  of  Eome, 
and  Cardinal  Manning  opened  it  and  took  them  in. 
Mr.  Carter  greatly  enjoyed  hearing  Cardinal  Manning, 
and  went  quite  regularly  for  a  while,  at  times  when 
there  was  no  Protestant  service.  The  Free  Church 
of  Scotland  was  trying  to  establish  a  mission  in 
Rome,  and  had  sent  there  the  Eev.  Mr.  Lawton,  an 
able  and  interesting  preacher,  who  held  services  in  his 
own  apartments,  he  having  chosen  a  large  and  pleasant 
parlor  with  this  object  in  view.  The  services  were  very 
simple  and  delightful,  Mr.  Lawton  appropriately  choos- 
ing the  Epistle  to  the  Eomans  as  the  subject  of  his 
sermons.  The  audience  were  constantly  reminded  of 
the  apostle  who  had  "  dwelt  two  whole  years  in  his  own 
hired  house,  and  received  all  who  came  in  unto  him." 
As  the  little  conventicle  was  held  only  on  sufferance, 
though  the  authorities  doubtless  knew  of  its  existence, 
it  was  thought  best  not  to  call  attention  to  it  by  sing- 
ing, and  the  congregation  was  requested  to  enter  and 
retire  in  little  groups   of  twos  and  threes.     All  this 


166         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

added  a  little  spice  of  interest  and  adventure,  appeal- 
ing to  the  imagination,  and  seeming  to  connect  the 
worshippers  with  those  who  eighteen  centuries  ago 
had  worshipped  in  the  Catacombs  under  the  ban  of 
those  in  authority. 

Mr.  Carter  met  an  old  friend  who  had  visited  his 
store  in  New  York,  the  Eev.  Mr.  B .  This  gentle- 
man had  some  years  before  been  on  board  the  ocean 
steamer  "Amazon"  when  she  was  burned  at  sea,  and 
had  escaped  in  a  lifeboat.  He  had  written  a  little  tract 
giving  a  description  of  the  burning,  and  making  an  ap- 
plication by  warning  sinners  to  flee  from  a  similar  peril. 
Before  coming  to  Italy,  he  had  had  this  tract  translated 
into  Italian,  and  brought  a  large  number  of  copies  with 
him  for  distribution  as  he  travelled.  As  he  went  about 
Eome,  he  gave  away  a  number  of  these  leaflets,  handing 
one  to  his  landlady,  another  to  a  soldier  in  the  Lateran 
palace.  In  St.  Peter's,  he  entered  into  conversation 
with  a  priest,  and  handed  him  one  of  the  tracts.  The 
next  day  an  officer  entered  his  rooms,  and  said  that  he 
and  his  package  of  books  must  go  at  once  to  the  police 
court.  Arrived  there,  he  was  accused  of  circulating  Prot- 
estant tracts.  "  You  are  mistaken,"  said  he,  "  there  is 
nothing  controversial  in  these  tracts.  There  is  nothing 
in  them  but  what  Protestants  and  Catholics  alike  be- 
lieve. It  is  a  simple  appeal  to  sinners  to  flee  from  the 
wrath  to  come."  "  No  cavilling,  sir,"  said  the  judge. 
"  You  cannot  be  allowed  to  stay  longer  here.  You  must 
take  the  first  steamer  that  leaves  Civita  Vecchia,  and 
after  you  get  on  board,  your  tracts  will  be  restored  to 
you."  In  vain  he  protested  that  he  had  a  written  per- 
mit to  stay  in  Eome  for  a  month.  Go  he  must,  and  go 
he  did. 

One  of  the  most  delightful  episodes  of  this  journey 


AMONG  THE  WALDENSES.  167 

was  a  Sunday  spent  with  the  Waldenses  at  La  Tour. 
One  Friday  evening  in  Milan,  it  was  discussed  whether 
the  Sabbath  should  be  spent  in  Genoa  or  Turin,  when 
suddenly  Mr.  Carter  looked  up  from  the  map  which  he 
was  studying  to  propose  that  a  little  longer  journey 
should  be  taken,  and  that  they  should  go  up  among  the 
Vaudois.  This  was  decided  by  acclamation,  and  Sat- 
urday evening  at  seven  found  them  at  Pinerolo.  Mr. 
Carter  went  out  to  seek  a  carriage  to  take  the  party  to 
La  Tour.  While  he  was  examining  a  vehicle,  a  pleasant- 
looking  gentleman,  dressed  in  black,  came  up  and  asked 
in  English  if  he  could  be  of  any  assistance  as  inter- 
preter. They  fell  into  conversation,  and  the  gentleman 
proved  to  be  one  of  the  professors  from  the  seminary  at 
La  Tour,  come  down  to  preach  in  Pinerolo  the  next  day. 
He  said,  "  Shall  I  introduce  you  to  one  of  our  pastors, 
who  is  going  up  on  the  diligence  ? "  and  presented  Pro- 
fessor Tron,  who  extended  a  cordial  welcome  to  the 
valley.  The  diligence  started  on,  and  shortly  after  the 
carriage  for  Mr.  Carter's  party  was  ready.  That  even- 
ing ride  through  the  twilight  into  the  beautiful  region, 
hallowed  by  so  many  sacred  associations,  was  one  never 
to  be  forgotten.  Arrived  at  the  little  inn  at  La  Tour, 
it  was  found  to  be  lighted  from  garret  to  cellar ;  the 
host  and  hostess  came  out  with  a  hearty  welcome,  as  if 
to  invited  guests.  "  Here  is  a  room  for  Monsieur  and 
Madame,  here  one  for  Mademoiselle.  This  one  we 
have  made  ready  for  the  young  gentlemen."  "  But," 
said  Mr.  Carter,  "  there  must  be  a  mistake.  We  had 
not  engaged  rooms."  "  0,  but  the  Professor  has  been 
here,  and  told  us  about  you,  and  the  rooms  are  all 
ready,  and  supper  is  on  the  table."  This  simple  hospi- 
tality was  very  grateful,  after  months  of  travel  among 
strangers  of  another  faith. 


168         LIFE  OF  ROBEKT  CARTER. 

In  the  morning,  the  Professor  came,  and  led  the  party 
to  Sunday  school,  which  was  held  in  the  church,  and 
was  participated  in  by  all  the  congregation,  old  and 
young.  Afterwards  came  the  church  service,  and  at 
the  end  of  the  sermon  the  clergyman  called  upon  a  boy 
in  the  audience,  who  rose  and  gave  a  very  full  account 
of  the  discourse.  After  a  little,  the  pastor  told  this  boy 
to  be  seated,  and  called  upon  another,  who  took  up  the 
subject  where  the  first  had  left  off.  The  service  was 
conducted  in  French.  At  that  time  theological  stu- 
dents had  to  be  sent  to  Geneva  to  be  educated,  as 
there  was  no  seminary  for  them  at  home.  The  people 
seem  to  speak  and  understand  it  as  well  as  their  native 
Italian.  They  are  very  simple  and  friendly  in  their 
manners,  and  salute  all  passers  by  with  a  cheery  "  Bon 
jour." 

Professor  Tron  came  towards  evening,  and  took  the 
family  out  for  a  walk  through  his  most  interesting  val- 
ley. He  pointed  out  a  cave  in  the  mountain  side 
where  a  large  party  of  Vaudois  had  hidden  themselves 
from  their  Savoyard  pursuers,  who  built  large  fires  in 
the  entrance,  and  suffocated  the  unfortunate  refugees. 
In  another  direction  was  a  mountain  into  whose  rocky 
fastnesses  the  small  army  of  the  Waldenises  had  fled 
from  their  pursuers,  who  set  guards  at  nightfall  around 
their  place  of  refuge,  thinking  that  in  the  morning  they 
would  fall  an  easy  prey.  It  was  bright  moonlight,  and 
it  seemed  impossible  that  they  should  escape,  but  in  the 
night  a  thick  fog  enveloped  them,  and  the  Vaudois, 
knowing  every  footpath,  were  enabled  to  slip  through 
their  enemies'  lines  and  escape.  Such  narratives,  told 
upon  the  very  spot  where  the  events  occurred,  were  of 
thrilling  interest.  Mr.  Carter  plied  his  informant  with 
questions  of  the  past  and  present.     He  was  delighted 


DR.   CtSAU  MALAN.  1G9 

to  hear  the  name  of  his  dear  old  friend,  Mr,  Lenox,  con- 
stantly and  gratefully  mentioned.  "  Mr.  Lenox  did  this 
for  us."  "  Mr.  Lenox  gave  us  that  library."  It  was  a 
great  pleasure  to  Mr.  Carter  to  have  this  familiar  inter- 
course with  the  descendants  of  those  "  who  kept  the 
truth  so  pure  of  old." 

Professor  Tron  said  that  the  Waldenses  had  lost  a 
good  friend  in  Count  Cavour,  and  gave  an  instance  of 
his  favor  to  them.  The  Piedmontese  constitution  for- 
bade the  printing  of  Bibles  or  other  books  without  the 
imprimatur  of  a  bishop.  The  Vaudois  were  accused  of 
violating  the  law,  but  Cavour  decided  that,  as  they  had 
no  bishops,  their  pastors  were  bishops.  Thus  the  door 
was  opened  for  their  publications. 

The  two  following  Sabbaths  were  spent  in  Geneva, 
where  the  family  attended  Dr.  Malan's  church.  This 
venerable  man  impressed  all  who  saw  and  heard  him 
by  the  earnestness  and  spirituality  of  his  appearance 
and  words.  His  noble  and  beautiful  face,  with  the  long 
white  hair  falling  upon  his  shoulders,  and  the  tender- 
ness of  his  speech,  made  him  appear  like  the  beloved 
disciple  in  his  last  days  at  Ephesus.  On  the  second 
Sunday,  there  was  a  communion  service,  and  the  gen- 
eral audience  retired  before  the  ordinance,  leaving  only 
about  a  dozen  people  besides  the  American  visitors.  Dr. 
Malan  whispered  to  his  session  about  providing  seats 
"  pour  les  dtrangers."  In  addressing  the  communicants, 
he  spoke  some  words  in  English  at  the  close,  and  in  the 
prayer  added  some  petitions  in  English.  When  the 
bread  and  wine  were  distributed,  he  directed  the  elders 
to  carry  them  to  the  strangers  first.  The  whole  service 
was  very  simple  and  beautiful,  and  especially  appro- 
priate, because  there  were  so  small  a  number  present,  — 
scarcely  more  than  the  little  company  who  first  partook 


170         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

of  the  feast  in  the  upper  chamber  in  Jerusalem.  After 
service,  Mr.  Carter's  oldest  son,  who  was  just  entering 
the  ministry,  was  presented  to  Dr.  Malan,  who,  placing 
his  hands  upon  the  young  man's  head  with  manifesta- 
tion of  deep  feeling,  said,  "  My  dear  brother,  you  have 
chosen  the  grandest  and  noblest  of  all  callings,  and  may 
the  blessing  of  the  God  of  Jacob  ever  rest  on  you  and 
on  any  church  of  Jesus  Christ  to  which  you  may  be 
called  to  minister." 

Dr.  Malan  had  long  been  a  correspondent  of  Mr. 
Carter.  In  one  letter,  which  has  unfortunately  been 
lost,  he  gave  many  interesting  reminiscences  of  the 
Haldanes  and  their  evangelical  work  in  Geneva  and 
Montauban,  which  was  blessed  to  the  conversion  of 
Malan,  Merle  d'Aubign^,  Gaussen,  and  the  Monods. 
He  also  dwelt  very  affectionately  and  enthusiastically 
on  the  character  of  Dr.  John  M.  Mason  of  New  York, 
who  was  with  him  in  Paris  in  the  early  years  of  the 
century.  Dr.  Malan  invited  him  to  go  to  the  theatre 
to  see  some  brilliant  performance.  Dr.  JMason  de- 
clined, saying  that  he  did  not  think  it  right.  Dr. 
Malan  said  that  he  could  see  no  objection  to  going 
where  they  were  not  known,  and  where  their  example 
could  do  no  harm.  Dr.  Mason  replied,  "  jMy  Chris- 
tianity knows  no  geography."  Dr.  Malan  added,  that 
his  views  in  regard  to  amusements  and  to  observance 
of  the  Sabbath  were  revolutionized  by  his  intercourse 
with  Dr.  IMason. 

Shortly  after  his  return  to  America,  in  August,  1862, 
Mr.  Carter  received  the  following  letter  from  Dr.  Guthrie, 
with  whom  from  that  time  he  kept  up  a  regular  corre- 
spondence until  his  death,  when  Mrs.  Guthrie  took  up 
the  pen,  and  was  henceforth  Mr.  Carter's  most  regular 
correspondent  in  Great  Britain.     Her  first  letter  is  also 


LETTER  FROM  DR.  GUTHRIE.        171 

inserted  here  with  her  husband's,  though  it  is  of  a  much 
later  date. 

Dr.  Guthrie's  letter  bears  date  September  4,  1862:  — 

"  Your  letter  was  a  great  pleasure  to  all  of  us,  and  all  the 
more  after  the  distress  into  which  we  were  thrown  after  the 
most  painful  rumor  that  one  of  your  sons  had  been  lost  in 
the  Jordan.  It  was  some  little  time  after  this  appeared  in  the 
newspapers  until  we  heard  of  it.  I  clung  to  the  hope  that  it 
might  not  be  your  son,  although  it  was  stated  to  be  a  young 
student  by  the  name  of  Carter  from  New  York,  and  we 
knew  that  your  sons  were  at  the  time  specified  in  the  Holy 
Laud.  Still  I  assure  you  we  were  very  happy  and  thankful 
to  learn  some  time  before  receiving  your  welcome  letter  that 
it  was  none  of  yours  who  had  been  drowned  while  bathing  in 
the  Jordan. 

"  How  well  I  would  like  to  see  you  again  !  We  go  over 
often  our  travels  with  you,  and  recall  with  pleasure  the  inter- 
course between  our  two  families.  I  hope  we  shall  meet 
again  on  earth  ;  meanwhile  may  we  be  making  daily  progress 
to  that  better  land  where  they  meet  to  part  no  more.   .  .  . 

"  Wliat  is  to  become  of  your  country  ]  In  some  respects 
the  providence  is  as  dark  and  terrible  as  the  thunder-cloud 
which  has  been  flashing  and  pealing  over  this  house  for  the 
last  two  hours.  As  you  will  remember,  I  never  anticipated 
any  other  result  than  that  which  has  happened.  Be  they 
right  or  wrong,  men  fighting  for  what  they  consider  indepen- 
dence, with  their  wives  and  children  at  their  back,  are  hard 
to  subdue.  And  in  the  accounts  from  America,  how  often 
do  I  wish  that  God  would  step  forward  and  put  an  end  to 
the  horrors  !  We  are  all  greatly  distressed  about  America, 
and  our  only  comfort  is  the  hope  that  the  blot  of  slavery 
will  in  the  end  be  washed  out.  It  is  sad  to  think,  however, 
that  should  be  done  by  tears  and  blood,  although  perhaps 
not  much  to  be  wondered  at.  It  is  a  blessed  thing  to  know 
that  God  reigneth  supreme  over  men,  with  all  their  folly  and 


172         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

madness.    One  would  otherwise  have  no  hope  for  the  better 
times  that  are  in  store  for  this  distracted  world." 

1  Salisbury  Road,  March  11,  1873. 

Dear  Mr.  Carter,  —  Among  the  hundreds  of  letters 
which  I  have  been  receiving  these  last  sad  weeks  of  tender 
sympathy  for  me  and  mine,  and  of  the  appreciation  of  the 
worth  and  dying  testimony  of  my  dear  husband,  none  cer- 
tainly have  touched  my  heart  more  than  yours ;  for  not  con- 
tent with  loving  thoughts  of  your  suffering  friend  on  his 
dying  bed,  you  follow  up  these  by  a  substantial  proof  of  your 
friendship  in  destining  so  large  a  sum  as  one  hundred  pounds 
to  do  with  as  he  thought  proper. 

Now,  since  the  Lord  has  called  him  to  a  higher  steward- 
ship, I  shall  gratefully  accept  your  gift,  dear  Mr.  Carter, 
as  it  will  enable  me  to  contribute  more  easily  (as  I  would 
ever  wish  to  do)  to  the  many  noble  objects  the  Master 
has  honored  his  servant  to  further  by  his  means  as  well 
as  his  advocacy  while  on  earth. 

You  will  be  glad  to  know  how  wonderfully  the  Lord  has 
sustained  me.  From  the  first  to  the  last  of  Dr.  Guthrie's 
illness,  I  have  seen  that  the  sickness  was  unto  death.  I 
have  cast  my  burden  on  the  Lord,  and  He  has  sustained  me. 
You  know  how  I  am  blessed  in  my  family,  all  doing  well  in 
the  world,  respected  and  respectable.  And  then  the  wide- 
spread tide  of  sympathy  and  kind  attention,  from  the  Queen 
down  to  the  poorest  in  the  land,  is  very  soothing  to  my 
stricken  heart.  David  sends  you  by  this  post  a  pamphlet 
containing  any  particulars  you  might  like  to  know  of  the  last 
hours  of  your  dear  departed  friend,  which  you  will  please 
accept  from  me  instead  of  a  letter  from  Charles,  which  I 
am  sure  he  would  have  gladly  written,  and  may  still  by 
and  by.  I  have  with  me  my  son  Thomas  and  his  wife, 
from  Buenos  Ayres  ;  so  the  house  does  not  look  so  desolate, 
though,  alas !  none  can  take  the  place  of  its  head. 

The  Lord  spare  you  and  bless  you,  dear  Mr.  Carter,  and 


LETTER  FROM  MRS.   GUTHRIE.  173 

your  family,  to  serve  His  cause,  and  bless  the  world  as  you 
have  done  for  many  a  day,  and  at  last  grant  you  an  abun- 
dant entrance  into  His  kingdom  above,  to  join  the  ransomed 
throng  who  have  already  beheld  their  blessed  Lord  and 
Saviour. 

Yours  with  much  esteem, 

Anne  Guthrie. 

Dr.  and  Mrs.  Guthrie,  with  their  youngest  son  Charles, 
had  made  all  their  arrangements  to  visit  America  in 
the  summer  of  1867,  and  were  to  be  Mr.  Carter's  guests. 
They  came  as  far  as  Queenstown,  but  the  motion  of  the 
steamer  had  so  bad  an  effect  on  the  action  of  the  Doctor's 
heart  that  he  was  obliged  to  give  up  the  voyage,  to  the 
sore  disappointment  of  his  many  American  friends.  His 
son  made  the  journey  alone,  and  won  many  friends  in 
this  country,  who  still  remember  him  with  cordial  in- 
terest. He  visited  Mr.  Carter  in  New  York  and  in 
Stockbridge,  Massachusetts. 


CHAPTEE    VII. 

WHEN  Mr.  Carter  returned  to  America  after  his 
most  enjoyable  European  trip,  he  was  fifty-five 
years  of  age,  entering  upon  what  are  generally  regarded 
as  declining  years,  but  he  was  destined  to  "  bring  forth 
fruit  in  old  age."  His  last  days  were  also  his  best. 
His  two  sons  in  the  ministry  soon  married  and  settled 
in  their  respective  parishes ;  a  few  years  later  his  only 
daughter  married  a  clergyman  ;  his  brother-in-law,  Rev. 
Dr.  Mann,  was  settled  in  Princeton ;  and  Mr.  Carter 
would  go  from  one  country  parish  to  another,  a  most 
welcome  visitor,  taking  part  in  any  meetings  or  conven- 
tions that  were  going  on  at  the  time,  always  present  at 
and  adding  greatly  to  the  interest  of  Sunday  school  and 
prayer  meeting.  His  friends  often  referred  to  these 
visits  as  those  of  a  bishop  to  his  diocese.  His  advice 
was  constantly  sought  by  the  young  ministers,  and  was 
always  judicious  and  kindly.  Wherever  he  went,  he 
spread  sunshine  by  his  cheery  presence.  At  his  side 
moved  his  gentle  wife,  casting  a  milder  but  no  less  cer- 
tain radiance.  She  was  almost  always  with  him,  except 
in  his  numerous  journeys  to  the  General  Assembly,  at- 
tendance on  which  she  resolutely  declined.  They  were 
singularly  happy  in  the  marriages  of  their  children  and 
all  new  members  coming  in  were  welcomed  by  the 
parents  as  if  they  had  been  indeed  their  own.  The 
family  tie  was  strengthened  and  not  weakened  by  the 
new  lives  added.     In  later  years  they  were  called  to 


STOCKBRIDGE.  175 

mourn,  as  one  by  one  their  children  by  marriage  were 
removed  by  death,  and  in  each  case  their  grief  was  deep 
and  lasting,  sorrowing  for  themselves  and  for  the  dear 
ones  so  sorely  bereaved,  and  for  the  grandchildren  left 
fatherless  or  motherless. 

In  1864  began  a  series  of  summer  gatherings  unique 
in  their  character.  It  was  not  enough  for  Mr.  Carter  to 
visit  his  children  in  their  homes,  and  have  them  visit 
him  in  New  York  with  their  little  ones,  a  few  at  a 
time.  He  wanted  all  his  clan  assembled  under  one  roof, 
and  for  a  considerable  period ;  so  during  the  vacations 
of  the  ministers  he  invited  all  to  some  country  haunt. 
He  found  comfortable  quarters  in  beautiful  Berkshire, 
Massachusetts,  first  at  Stockbridge,  afterwards  at  South 
Egremont.  As  years  passed  on,  the  party  increased, 
until  at  last,  with  mothers-in-law  and  brothers-in-law 
and  babies  and  nurses,  it  frequently  numbered  nearly 
forty.  A  large  sitting-room  was  always  provided  where 
family  prayers  were  regularly  conducted,  and  where 
many  a  merry  game  was  enjoyed  in  the  evenings.  The 
days  passed  in  what  seemed  a  delightful  dream.  The 
young  cousins  grew  up  with  almost  brotherly  interest 
in  each  other.  Occasionally  a  few  congenial  outsiders 
dropped  into  tlie  happy  circle. 

Mr.  Carter  was  always  very  fond  of  driving,  and 
wherever  he  was  would  constantly  get  up  great  carriage 
loads  to  go  to  some  point  of  interest.  To  him  a  pleas- 
ure shared  was  always  doubled,  and  when  he  was  along 
no  one  else  ever  troubled  himself  about  expense. 

Dr.  Henry  M.  Field  wrote  in  the  Evangelist,  after 
his  old  friend's  death :  — 

"  For  some  years  he  spent  his  summers  near  us  in  the 
country,  where  in  1866  he  received  a  visit  from  Dr.  McCosh, 
who  was  then  making  his  acquaintance  with  America,  and 


176  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

tlie  first  time  that  we  ever  saw  a  face  to  which  we  were 
afterwards  to  look  up  with  such  a  tender  veneration  was 
when  Robert  Carter  and  Dr.  McCosh  were  on  the  lawn  in 
front  of  the  old  farmhouse  playing  croquet.  But  the  dear 
elder  did  not,  any  more  than  the  learned  divine,  fail  to  seize 
every  opportunity  for  doing  good.  He  attended  a  little 
church  among  the  hills,  and  his  contribution  to  it  was  fully 
one  tenth  of  the  pastor's  salary  ;  and  when  the  latter  was 
laid  upon  a  bed  of  sickness,  no  visits  were  more  frequent  and 
more  welcome  than  those  of  this  man  of  God,  whose  very 
presence  in  the  sick-room  was  a  benediction." 

One  of  Mr.  Carter's  most  delightful  memories  of 
Stockbridge  was  of  an  evening  at  Dr.  Field's  house, 
with  Dr.  McCosh,  Dr.  Mark  Hopkins  and  his  brother 
Dr.  Albert  Hopkins,  and  ^Nlrs.  Harriet  Beecher  Stowe. 
It  was  an  occasion  never  to  be  forgotten  by  any  who 
listened  to  the  flow  of  brilliant  conversation. 

The  little  church  to  which  Dr.  Field  alludes  was  one 
in  the  village  of  Curtisville,  about  two  miles  from 
Stockbridge.  The  first  summer  that  he  visited  Berk- 
shire he  was  boarding  with  his  family  in  a  pleasant 
hou.=?e,  beautifully  situated  between  Stockbridge  and 
Curtisville,  and  with  a  lovely  view  over  the  picturesque 
hills  and  valleys  of  Berkshire.  There  can  hardly  be 
a  more  beautiful  village  on  earth  than  Stockbridge, 
with  its  magnificent  elms  shading  its  broad  street,  — 
with  its  lovely  homes,  where  culture  and  refinement 
have  made  their  abode  since  Eliot  and  Jonathan  Ed- 
wards lived  there.  The  first  Sunday  Mr.  Carter  drove 
with  his  party  to  Stockbridge  to  church,  but  during  the 
following  week  he  noticed  a  spire  near  at  hand  among 
the  trees,  and  inquired  if  there  was  not  a  church  within 
walking  distance.  "O  yes,  there  is  the  Curtisville 
church,  but  it  is  a  plain  little  affair.     You  would  not 


CURTIS  VILLE.  177 

like  to  go  there."  "  I  think  I  should,  for  two  reasons. 
I  never  take  horses  out  on  Sunday  if  there  is  a  church 
I  can  walk  to,  and  we  might  be  able  to  do  some  good 
in  that  church.  The  Stockbridge  one  is  strong,  and 
does  not  need  us."  From  that  time  he  threw  himself 
heartily  into  church  work  there,  attending  Sunday 
school  and  evening  meetings  as  if  he  was  a  deacon  or  an 
elder.  The  prayer  meetings  were  exceedingly  interest- 
ing and  very  largely  attended.  Mr.  Carter  and  his  sons 
were  cordially  welcomed,  and  it  is  believed  that  great 
good  was  done  in  that  quiet  neighborhood.  The  people 
had  grown  disheartened,  the  church  was  in  great  need 
of  repairs,  but  they  felt  unable  to  do  anything.  Mr. 
Carter  spoke  words  of  encouragement,  and  when  he  of- 
fered a  liberal  subscription  on  condition  that  they  would 
do  their  best,  the  people  took  hold  with  a  good  will, 
and  when  he  came  back  the  next  summer  the  shabby 
little  building  was  transformed  to  such  a  degree  as 
to  be  hardly  recognizable.  The  whole  church  life  was 
revived  and  spiritualized.  It  seemed  as  if  the  dry 
bones  lived.  The  Sunday  school  was  a  special  field  of 
labor  to  him.  Here  and  in  many  other  schools  he  of- 
fered prizes  to  the  children  for  different  forms  of  Bible 
research.  One  of  these  was  the  offer  of  an  attractive 
book  to  every  member  of  the  Sunday  school  who 
would  bring  him  a  written  list  of  all  the  names  of 
Christ  that  he  could  find.  Such  a  list  has  been  found 
prepared  by  himself,  and  containing  one  hundred  and 
sixty-five  names  of  our  Lord.  Books  were  promised 
to  any  one  who  would  come  and  tell  him  that  he  or 
she  had  read  the  Bible  through.  In  the  course  of  his 
life  he  must  have  given  thousands  of  volumes  in  this 
way.  Another  favorite  scheme  of  his  was  to  tell  some 
young  man  who  was  beginning  to  use  tobacco  that  he 

12 


178         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

would  give  him  twenty  dollars  if  he  would  give  it  up 
till  he  came  of  age.  He  thought,  if  the  habit  was  not 
formed  before  that  age,  there  was  little  danger  of  its 
being  formed  afterwards.  One  day  he  met  a  young  lad 
smoking,  and  said  to  him,  "  John,  if  you  will  stop  smok- 
ing till  you  are  twenty-one  I  '11  give  you  twenty  dollars." 
The  boy  threw  away  his  cigar,  saying,  "  I  '11  never  smoke 
again,"  and  he  never  did.  When  he  came  of  age,  and 
he  had  received  his  twenty  dollars,  a  member  of  his 
family  said  to  him,  "  Are  you  not  going  to  smoke  again 
now  ?  "  "  Xo  indeed,  I  would  not  show  such  disrespect 
to  Mr.  Carter." 

It  has  been  said  that  he  was  a  peace  lover.  It  was 
impossible  to  quarrel  with  him,  because  he  positively 
would  not  quarrel.  People  tried  it  sometimes,  and 
perhaps  would  go  off  in  a  huff  because  all  their  sharp 
speeches  were  good-naturedly  answered,  and  then,  when 
they  got  over  their  pet  and  came  back,  they  found  him 
just  as  he  always  had  been,  kind  and  friendly,  with 
never  an  allusion  to  their  former  outbreak.  He  had 
the  best  of  all  dispositions,  naturally  a  quick  temper, 
under  perfect  control.  He  had  his  own  strong  con- 
victions on  important  subjects,  and  was  not  afraid  to 
express  them  when  necessary,  but  he  had  large  charity 
for  other  people's  convictions;  and  the  petty  affairs 
which  many  people  quarrel  over  were  to  him  trifles, 
unworthy  of  a  thought.  "  Why  do  ye  not  rather  suffer 
wrong  ? "  was  a  text  often  on  his  lips. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  a  good  many  of  his  Southern 
correspondents,  of  whom  he  had  not  heard  for  months 
or  years,  came  North,  and  found  him  ready  to  give  a 
kindly  reception.  A  clergyman  whom  he  had  known 
well,  a  fine  scholarly  man,  but  a  strong  Secessionist, 
came  into  his  store  in  the  spring  of  1865.     Mr.  Carter 


SOUTHERN   FRIENDS.  179 

and  his  brothers  were  very  glad  to  see  their  old  friend, 
and  gathered  about  him  to  hear  how  he  had  fared  in 
the  long  period  of  silence  and  separation.  He  talked  to 
them  awhile  with  evident  emotion,  and  then  said,  "  Mr. 
Carter,  I  don't  understand  this.  I  came  North,  expect- 
ing to  find  coldness  and  alienation,  and  you  welcome 
me  as  warmly  as  you  ever  did."  "Oh,"  said  Mr.  Carter, 
laughing,  "  of  course  we  welcome  the  repentant  prodi- 
gal." "  But  I  am  not  repentant.  I  am  conquered,  but 
not  convinced."  "  We  receive  you  as  a  Christian  brother, 
any  way.  The  war  is  over,  and  we  will  all  accept  its 
conclusions,  and  talk  over  only  the  many  things  on 
which  we  meet  on  common  ground,  and  not  the  few  on 
which  we  disagree."  This  clergyman  had  lost  every- 
thing during  the  war ;  he  was  unable  to  preach,  and 
was  sorely  embarrassed.  The  same  day,  a  prominent 
and  wealthy  man  of  Chicago  came  into  the  store,  and 
said,  "  I  want  to  buy  a  library,  and  expect  to  spend 
twenty  thousand  dollars  on  it.  I  wish  you  would  help 
me  in  the  selection  of  the  books."  Mr.  Carter  told  him 
that  he  had  not  time  to  go  into  such  a  work,  which 
should  be  done  with  great  care,  and  would  be  a  year's 

work  for  some  one,  but  said,  "You  know  Dr. ,  who 

has  just  come  up  from  the  South.  He  is  just  the  man 
to  do  such  a  work,  and  I  know  that  he  greatly  needs 
employment."  The  position  was  offered,  and  gladly 
accepted  by  the  clergyman,  who  gratefully  thanked 
Mr.  Carter,  saying,  "  You  certainly  obey  the  injunction, 
'  If  thine  enemy  hunger,  feed  him.' "  The  idea  of  Mr. 
Carter  regarding  a  political  opponent  as  an  enemy  was 
preposterous  in  the  last  degree. 

Another  Southerner,  who  came  up  from  the  South 
at  the  close  of  the  war  and  renewed  old  friendship 
with  Mr.  Carter,  was  Mr.  McCarter,  at  whose  house 


180  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

in  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  he  had  visited.  He  was 
a  man  of  most  benevolent  character.  In  slavery  times, 
no  free  colored  person  was  allowed  to  live  in  South 
Carolina.  If  they  earned  money  to  purchase  their 
freedom,  they  were  obliged  to  put  themselves  under 
the  protection  of  some  white  man,  and  be  considered 
his  slaves.  Quite  a  large  number  had  chosen  him  as 
their  master  in  this  way,  and,  while  calling  themselves 
his  slaves,  they  carried  on  business  for  themselves. 
When  Mr.  Carter  visited  him,  in  1855,  he  would  fre- 
quently say,  in  passing  through  the  streets,  "  That  is 
my  man,"  or,  "  That  is  my  woman."  This  noble  Chris- 
tian man  during  the  war  visited  hospitals  and  prisons, 
carrying  kindly  relief  and  sympathy  to  the  wounded 
of  both  armies.  He  had  removed  to  Columbia,  and 
was  there  when  it  was  burned.  When  Sherman's 
army  passed  through,  there  was  great  excitement  and 
trouble  in  the  town.  He  was  summoned  to  his  front 
gate  to  speak  with  a  party  of  soldiers  who  demanded 
food.  "  I  will  do  the  best  I  can  for  you,  but  the  South- 
ern army  has  just  passed  through,  and  stripped  our 
larder,  and  really  I  have  but  poor  fare  to  offer  you." 
While  he  was  speaking,  the  torchlight  fell  full  on  his 
face,  and  a  soldier  exclaimed,  "  Why,  old  horse,  is  that 
you  ? "  And  turning  to  the  commanding  officer,  he 
said,  "  This  man  was  very  kind  to  us  Northern  prison- 
ers. I  was  sick  and  in  prison,  and  he  came  to  me 
bringing  comforts  and  speaking  kind  words."  "  I  shall 
set  a  guard  on  his  liouse,  then,"  said  the  officer.  "  Sir, 
you  need  fear  no  further  molestation."  Through  all 
that  stormy  time,  "the  beloved  of  the  Lord  dwelt  in 
safety  by  Him." 

When  he  came  North,  after  peace  was  declared,  he 
arrived  unexpectedly  one  evening  at  Mr.  Carter's  house, 


AN  AGED   HEROINE.  181 

exclaiming,  as  he  entered  the  parlor,  "  Will  you  receive 
an  old  rebel  ? "  He  was  welcomed  with  open  arms,  and 
the  two  friends  sat  late  that  night  talking  over  the  ex- 
citing events  that  had  taken  place  since  they  last  met. 
Mr,  McCarter  wore  a  suit  of  rather  rough-looking  cloth, 
and,  turning  to  his  hostess,  remarked,  "  You  may  not 
think  I  am  very  elegantly  dressed,  Mrs.  Carter,  but  per- 
haps you  may  have  more  respect  for  my  garments  when 
I  tell  you  that  this  suit  I  have  on  cost  me  six  hundred 
dollars."  This  little  visit  was  greatly  enjoyed  by  both 
friends,  and  they  tacitly  agreed  to  differ  on  topics  on 
which  they  took  entirely  opposite  views.  The  quiet 
games  of  chess  over  which  they  spent  an  hour  each  even- 
ing formed  the  only  battle-ground  between  the  two. 

One  of  Mr.  Carter's  dearest  friends  was  Mrs.  Sarah 
A.  Brown,  who  for  many  years  kept  a  young  ladies' 
boarding  school  in  New  York.  She  had  been  associated 
with  him  in  the  High  School,  being  principal  of  the 
girls'  department,  and  the  friendship  then  formed  was 
sustained  through  life.  She  was  a  woman  of  fine  in- 
tellect and  very  lovely  character.  At  the  time  of  the 
riots,  in  1863,  she  was  living  on  the  corner  of  Twenty- 
Third  Street  and  Seventh  Avenue.  Looking  from  her 
window,  she  saw  several  colored  women,  with  children, 
chased  along  the  avenue  by  a  mob.  She  went  out  on 
her  steps  and  beckoned  the  poor  creatures  in,  promising 
all  the  protection  in  her  power.  The  mob  surrounded 
the  house,  threatening  to  set  fire  to  it  if  she  did  not 
give  up  the  Negroes.  Again  she  went  out  on  her  door- 
step, and  addressed  the  rioters,  saying  that  she  felt 
that  she  could  not  die  in  a  better  cause  than  defending 
the  oppressed,  and  that  she  never  would  give  up  these 
defenceless  creatures.  The  noble  words  and  dignified 
bearing  of  the  stately,  beautiful  old  lady,  who  counted 


182  LIFE   OF   ROBERT  CARTER. 

not  her  life  dear  unto  herself,  so  impressed  those  law- 
less men  that  they  went  quietly  away,  and  she  suffered 
no  further  molestation.  She  kept  the  refugees  in  her 
house  for  several  days,  and  when  at  last  the  streets 
were  quiet  she  went  down  to  Mr.  Carter's  store  to  ask 
if  he  would  join  with  her  in  providing  a  simple  outfit 
for  them,  as  they  had  lost  their  clothing  and  furniture 
in  the  riots. 

In  July,  1867,  one  of  her  two  daughters  died  after  a 
brief  illness  at  Princeton,  Kew  Jersey,  where  Mrs.  Brown 
was  then  residing-  At  this  time,  Mr.  Carter  wrote  her 
the  following  letter :  — 

"By  a  letter  received  yesterday,  we  were  informed 
that  your  loving  daughter,  3kliss  Caroline,  was  no  more. 
The  sad  tidings  deeply  affected  us  all,  the  more  so  as 
they  were  so  unexpected.  How  little  we  know  what  a 
day  may  bring  forth !  "What  can  I  say  to  you  to  com- 
fort you  ?  You  know  the  love  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  you  know  how  lo^dngly  he  dealt  with  her  for  many 
a  year.  Has  he  now  in  anger  smitten  her  down  ?  Can 
you  suppose  this  to  be  the  case  ?  By  no  means  !  You 
mourn  not  as  those  without  hope.  For,  as  Jesus  died 
and  rose  again,  so  those  who  sleep  in  Jesus  he  will 
bring  with  him.  This  sore  trial  to  your  faith  and  pa- 
tience brings  to  my  mind  all  the  way  by  which  the 
Lord  has  led  you  these  nearly  forty  years  since  we  first 
met.  How  goodness  and  mercy  have  followed  you  ! 
And  yet  through  much  tribulation  you  have  come. 
Can  you  not  now  set  to  your  seal  that  God  is  true,  —  is 
love  ?  For  many  years  past  I  could  say  with  the  apos- 
tle, '  I  thank  my  God  upon  every  remembrance  of  you.' 
Can  I  not  still  continue  to  say  so  ?  Y^es,  '  He  doeth  all 
things  well'  May  it  not  be  that  he  is  saying  to  you, 
'  Arise,  this  is  not  your  rest,  for  it  is  polluted.' 


LETTER   TO   A   BEREAVED  FRIEND.  183 

"  The  venerable  Samuel  Eutherford,  writing  to  a  lady 
sorely  bereaved,  uses  this  language  :  '  Build  not  your 
nest  on  any  tree  in  this  forest,  for  your  Master  has  sold 
them  all  to  death,  and  he  will  soon  come  and  take  them 
all  away.' 

"  Grandmother,  Mrs.  Carter,  and  all  of  us,  deeply  sym- 
pathize with  you  and  Miss  Brown.  The  Lord  deal  very 
tenderly  with  you,  and  show  you  wherefore  he  contend- 
eth  with  you,  and  make  you  to  become  more  and  more 
fruitful.  '  Whom  he  loveth,  he  chasteneth.'  He  hath 
taken  your  loved  child  to  himself.  He  hath  washed 
her,  and  made  her  white  and  clean,  and  hath  clothed 
her  with  the  spotless  robe  of  Christ's  righteousness. 
How  happy  she  is  now  !  how  holy  !  how  loving  !  We 
cannot  think  of  her  but  as  the  bride  adorned  for  her 
husband. 

"  Eichard  Cameron  was  beheaded  at  Airsmoss,  in 
Scotland,  and  the  headless  body  was  there  buried. 
Shortly  after,  Alexander  Peden  sat  on  the  grave,  and, 
wayworn  and  weary,  raised  his  eyes  to  Heaven,  and 
exclaimed,  '0  to  be  wi'  Eitchie ! ' 

"  We  shall  go  to  her ;  she  shall  not  return  to  us.  She 
is  not  dead,  but  sleepeth.  May  we  too  sleep  as  sweetly 
as  she  does  in  the  blessed  Saviour  when  our  day  is  done 
and  the  night  cometh !  '  Peace  be  unto  you.'  '  The  very 
God  of  peace  dwell  in  you  richly,  and  make  you  to 
abound  more  and  more  in  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit.'  '  The 
Lord  hear  thee  in  the  day  of  trouble,  the  name  of  the 
God  of  Jacob  defend  thee,  send  thee  help  from  the  sanc- 
tuary, and  strengthen  thee  out  of  Zion.' 

"  I  am  glad  that  our  dear  brother  M.  is  so  near  you. 
He  is  a  wise  counsellor,  and  loves  you. 

"  May  the  Master  open  his  lips,  and  cause  him  to 
speak  comfortable  words. 


184  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

"  We  commit  you  and  your  dear  daughter  E.  to  our 
covenant-keeping  God." 

Eeference  has  been  made  several  times  to  Mr.  Car- 
ter's friendship  with  Dr.  McCosh,  which  began  in  1850 
and  continued  to  the  close  of  his  life,  when  Dr.  McCosh 
stood  beside  his  coffin  and  paid  a  true  and  tender  trib- 
ute to  the  memory  of  his  tried  and  faithful  friend. 
Dr.  McCosh  gives  the  following  history  of  his  inter- 
course with  Kobert  Carter :  — 

"  I  was  first  brought  into  communication  with  Mr.  Carter 
when,  in  1850,  I  published  in  Edinburgh  my  first  book,  'The 
Method  of  Divine  Government,  Physical  and  Moral.'  He 
immediately  republished  the  work  in  America,  sending  me 
the  nice  little  sum  of  fifty  pounds.  He  took  a  deep  interest 
in  the  book,  and  promoted  its  sale,  not  merely  because  it 
brought  him  business  profit,  but  because  he  thought  it  would 
do  good,  and  because  he  believed  that  it  set  forth  what  he 
was  sure  was  the  true  doctrine  in  regard  to  God  and  his 
government.  From  that  time  I  corresponded  with  him 
occasionally.  I  saw  him  in  Edinburgh  when  he  came  on  a 
visit  to  his  native  country  looking  out  for  good  books  to 
republish  and  make  known  and  circulate  in  the  wider  coun- 
try of  America.  I  owe  to  him,  as  many  others  do,  the 
introduction  of  my  early  works  into  the  wide  continent  of 
North  America.  He  threw  himself  heartily  into  this  work, 
and  carried  it  on  in  a  business-like  manner,  believing  that 
in  this  way  he  could  do  most  good  both  in  his  native  and 
his  adopted  country. 

"  Being  now  somewhat  known  in  the  United  States,  I  paid 
a  visit  to  that  country  in  1866.  He  received  me  as  his 
guest,  first  in  New  York,  and  then  in  his  summer  quarters 
in  a  farmhouse  near  Lenox.  In  that  latter  place  I  saw  him 
at  his  best.  He  had  gathered  his  family  around  him.  He 
was  lively,  he  was  genial.  He  had  many  an  anecdote  to  tell 
of  the  scenes  through  which  he  had  passed  in  Scotland  and 


DR.  McCOSH.  185 

iu  America.  In  particular  he  watched  with  deep  interest  the 
career  of  Thomas  Guthrie,  whose  works  he  pubhshed,  and 
other  eminent  ministers  of  his  native  land.  He  felt  a  deep 
interest  in  the  Scotchmen  who  came  over  to  America.  Some 
of  them  had  unfortunately  fallen  into  poverty  and  bad  hab- 
its, and  he  took  evident  pleasure  in  telling  how  he  had  been 
the  means  of  relieving  them  in  their  difficulties  and  starting 
them  upon  a  new  and  better  course.  This  was  a  subject  on 
which  he  always  delighted  to  expatiate. 

"  Everybody  was  impressed  with  two  features  of  his  char- 
acter. One  was  his  gi-eat  conscientiousness.  However  bril- 
liant and  salable  a  book  might  be,  he  would  not  publish  it 
if  its  tendency  was  not  good,  or  even  if  it  contained  a  pas- 
sage fitted  to  injure  religion  or  morality.  In  this  respect 
he  was  more  rigidly  faithful  than  any  publisher  I  ever  met 
with.  He  used  his  daily  employment  as  a  means  of  impart- 
ing elevated  knowledge  and  spiritual  comfort  to  old  and 
young.  I  know  of  no  library,  juvenile  mission,  or  tract 
society  containing  a  greater  number  of  books,  all  good  and 
none  evil,  than  Mr.  Carter's  store  in  Broadway. 

*'  Every  one  noticed  another  characteristic.  His  heart  was 
full  of  pious  devotion.  It  was  ever  ready  to  express  itself 
in  prayers.  It  was  pleasant  and  refreshing  to  join  him  in 
his  family  worship.  At  meetings  for  benevolent  and  reli- 
gious purposes  he  was  commonly  asked  to  lead  in  prayer. 
Every  sentence  was  rich  with  spiritual  unction,  and  you  felt 
that  it  was  the  outpouring  of  the  heart." 

Dr.  McCosh  has  kindly  given  his  consent  to  the  pub- 
lication of  three  of  his  letters,  which  explain  themselves 
and  which  throw  light  on  a  very  interesting  period  in 
the  lives  of  both.  They  were  written  in  the  interval 
between  Dr.  McCosh's  visit  to  America,  in  1866,  and 
his  assuming  the  Presidency  of  Princeton  College,  in 
1868.  The  first  bears  the  date  of  Belfast,  Septem- 
ber 1, 1866. 


186         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"  After  a  pleasant  passage,  I  arrived  in  Queenstown  on 
Wednesday,  and  at  my  own  home  the  following  day. 

"  My  deepest  feeling  is  one  of  thankfulness  to  the  loving 
God  who  has  kept  me  through  these  long  voyages  of  six 
thousand  miles,  and  of  these  still  longer  journeys  of  seven 
thousand  five  hundred  miles,  during  the  whole  of  which  I 
have  been  in  such  a  state  of  health  as  to  enjoy  the  scenes 
through  which  I  have  passed,  and  to  receive,  I  trust,  profit 
from  them. 

"  I  also  feel  gratitude  to  the  many,  many  friends,  for  such 
I  i-eckon  them,  in  America,  who  have  shown  me  so  much 
kindness  and  put  themselves  to  so  much  trouble  to  throw 
open  to  me  objects  of  interest  in  your  towns  and  in  your 
rural  districts,  in  your  churches  and  in  your  benevolent  and 
educational  institutions.  Few  travellers  from  our  country 
have  seen  such  a  variety  of  men  and  manners,  of  industrial 
life  and  natural  scenery,  in  your  country,  as  I  have  had  the 
privilege  of  doing. 

"Among  these  friends  I  giv^e  the  first  place  to  you,  — you 
and  your  family,  and  your  brothers,  and  indeed  your  whole 
kindred  and  connection.  I  am  indebted  to  you  for  being 
able  to  plan  such  a  tour,  and  for  making  me  known  to  many 
who  helped  me  on  my  journey,  and  for  the  quiet  though 
deep  pleasure  I  always  felt  in  the  bosom  of  your  family,  first 
in  New  York,  then  still  more  in  that  lovely  valley  in  Berk- 
shire. I  feel  that  the  purposes  which  I  had  in  view  in  my 
visit  to  your  country  have  been  fulfilled,  and  I  thank  God 
and  my  American  friends  that  I  have  come  home  thoroughly 
refreshed  in  body  and  in  mind ;  and  I  feel  that  I  can  enter 
with  renewed  life  on  my  college  duties  and  on  my  more 
general  studies.  I  have  received  new  and  profitable  sensa- 
tions and  impressions,  and  laid  up  many  pleasant  memories 
to  be  cherished  in  time,  and  I  believe  in  eternity.  I  have 
formed  acquaintances  in  a  day  or  in  an  hour  to  be  remem- 
bered by  me  as  long,  as  I  have  a  memory. 

"  I  found  the  good  people  in  your  country  ready  to  recip- 


DR.   McCOSH.  187 

rocate  any  feeling  of  kindness  expressed  by  the  people  of 
this  country.  I  rejoice  in  the  opportunity  which  I  had  in 
the  General  Assemblies  at  St.  Louis  of  making  statements 
which  I  trust  tend  towards  bringing  Christians  in  your 
country  into  closer  communion  with  Christians  in  our  land. 
"  There  was  such  a  spirit  exhibited  at  all  our  meetings 
about  the  Evangelical  Alliance  in  New  York,  that  I  am  con- 
fidently expecting  that  there  will  soon  be  a  public  announce- 
ment of  the  formation  of  an  American  organization  to  act 
along  with  the  British  in  exhibiting  and  realizing  the  unity 
of  the  Church  of  Christ.  It  will  now  be  my  pleasant  duty 
to  report  all  this  to  Christians  here,  and  thus  join  the  other 
end  of  the  chain  and  connect  the  countries  by  a  quicker  and 
a  stronger  bond  than  the  Atlantic  Cable.  I  have  seen  how 
much  you  owe  to  education,  I  have  seen  much  in  your 
higher  schools  and  colleges  to  admire  and  to  copy.  I  am 
ready  to  testify  that  in  New  England  and  in  other  parts, 
including  the  West,  you  have  been  able  to  raise  the  working 
classes  to  a  state  of  physical  comfort  and  of  intelligence 
such  as  has  not  been  realized  in  any  country  in  Europe. 
You  owe  this  to  the  Word  of  God,  to  your  quiet  Sabbaths, 
and  to  education." 

The  following  letter  from  Dr.  McCosh  bears  date 
January  22,  1868:  — 

"  In  a  letter  which  I  had  last  week  from  a  gentleman  of 
some  influence  in  the  States,  he  mentions  incidentally  that 
Dr.  Maclean  has  resigned  the  presidency  of  the  New  Jersey 
TJniversity,  and  that  some  are  greatly  talking  of  me  for  the 
office.  I  had  occasion  to  write  him,  and  said  simply  that  I 
was  not  seeking  any  office  here  or  elsewhere,  but  that  if  any 
such  proposal  was  laid  before  me  I  would  favorably  consider 
it.  I  think  it  due  to  the  friendship  subsisting  between  you 
and  me  to  let  you  know  this.  I  am  willing  to  go  wherever 
my  Master  may  call  me  to  a  wider  field  of  usefulness,  in  this 
country  or  America.     I  have  just  declined  a  proposal  to  make 


188  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

me  Professor  of  Theology  in  London  to  the  English  Presby- 
terian Church,  because  my  field  was  not  theology  proper,  but 
philosophy  always  in  its  religious  bearings.  I  do  not  know 
the  exact  duties  or  emoluments  of  the  New  Jersey  College ; 
vet  if  it  affords  a  wider  field  to  me,  —  a  field  for  turning  all 
my  studies  in  science  and  philosophy  to  a  religious  account, 
—  I  am  willing  to  go  at  my  Master's  command,  but  the  in- 
vitation must  come  from  others,  and  I  will  permit  no  solici- 
tation on  my  part  directly  or  indirectly.  I  think  you 
understand  my  position.  I  rejoiced  more  than  I  can  tell 
you  over  the  success  of  the  Philadelphia  Convention,  It  is 
a  great  event  in  the  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  I 
was  so  glad  to  find  you  taking  a  part  in  it,  and  a  part  which 
led  to  good  results.  As  soon  as  I  got  the  accounts  I  wrote 
two  papers,  with  my  name  signed,  for  the  *  Weekly  Review  ' 
of  London,  and  ordered  copies  to  be  sent  to  you. 

"  In  the  three  kingdoms  there  is  to  be  a  desperate  fight 
on  the  Endowment  question.  The  battle  is  to  be  in  Ireland, 
and  I  am  in  the  heart  of  it.  I  have  given  my  utterance. 
An  attempt  was  made  to  bring  me  before  the  Assembly  for 
censure.  I  have  incurred  a  good  deal  of  odium,  but  public 
opinion  in  the  town  is  gradually  coming  over  to  the  right 
side.  I  hope  the  Irish  Establishment  will  go,  and  other  con- 
sequences will  follow.  Those  who  stand  up  for  the  Donum 
here  are  combining  with  Begg  and  the  Anti-Union  men  in 
Scotland.  They  feel  the  cause  to  be  one.  It  will  be  a  keen 
and  disagreeable  struggle,  but  under  God  I  hope  the  end 
will  be  good." 

On  February  8,  1868,  he  again  writes  :  — 

"  The  proposal  to  make  me  President  of  New  Jersey  Uni- 
versity has  come  upon  me  with  surprise.  With  so  many 
gifted  men  in  America,  I  am  astonished  anybody  should 
think  of  me.  I  can  look  at  the  office  only  on  one  condition, 
and  that  is  that  the  call  comes  spontaneously  from  the  Ameri 
can  side,  and  as  a  call  in  Providence.     If  it  thus  comes  I  shall 


DR.  McCOSH.  189 

feel  bound  to  consider  it  favorably.  There  are  some  things 
which  would  incline  me  towards  it.  I  should  feel  it  an 
honor  to  be  in  an  office  filled  by  such  Presidents,  from 
Edwards  to  Maclean.  I  should  willingly  let  my  bones  be 
buried  in  the  spot  where  these  Presidents  sleep.  I  was 
greatly  impressed  with  the  abilities  and  character  of  the 
Professors  in  the  College  and  Seminary,  and  feel  that  I 
could  pleasantly  spend  my  days  among  them. 

"My  past  experience  as  a  minister,  first  in  the  Church  of 
Scotland,  and  then  in  the  Free  Church,  and  latterly  as  a 
Professor  in  the  last  established  University  in  these  king- 
doms, and  my  rather  wide  studies,  may,  with  the  blessing  of 
God,  be  turned  into  some  use.  I  feel  especially  that  I  might 
have  more  freedom  there  to  promote  the  cause  of  Christ 
than  in  a  State  college  in  this  divided  country, — that  is, 
Ireland. 

"  There  are  considerations  on  the  other  side  which  I  can- 
not look  at  at  present,  such  as  love  to  the  old  country  and 
attachment  to  friends.  I  am  glad  you  do  not  ask  me  to 
commit  myself. 

"  If  no  call  comes,  I  am  not  disappointed,  as  I  have  made 
no  application,  and  cherished  no  hopes.  If  the  call  comes,  I 
am  bound  to  consider  it  fairly  and  prayerfully.  I  was  not  just 
offered  the  chair  in  London.  But  influential  parties  wrote 
me,  pressing  me  to  allow  myself  to  be  nominated.  To  each 
of  them  I  wrote  an  immediate  declination,  my  ground  being 
the  same  as  induced  me  to  decline  the  call  of  the  Assembly 
to  a  Free  Church  chair  in  Glasgow, —  that,  having  devoted  so 
many  years  to  philosophy  in  its  various  bearings,  I  was  not 
fit  to  teach  theology.  But  I  offered,  if  they  did  not  ask  me 
to  separate  myself  from  my  chair  here  and  from  philosophy, 
to  deliver  a  course  of  lectures  to  them  every  spring  on  the 
subjects  lying  between  theology  and  science.  The  Synod 
does  not  meet  till  April.  My  proposal  was  private,  and  may 
not  amount  to  anything. 

"  Thank  God,  I  am  well  and  have  plenty  of  work.    I  began 


190         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

here  in  the  College  with  about  forty  students  ;  of  late  years, 
the  names  of  my  students  have  numbered  from  one  hundred 
to  a  hundred  and  thirty-five." 

Little  has  been  said  so  far  of  Mr.  Carter's  General  As- 
sembly experiences.  These  formed  a  very  interesting 
part  of  his  life,  and  it  is  a  great  pity  that  a  full  record 
of  them  has  not  been  kept.  He  was  seventeen  times  a 
delegate,  and  took  part  in  many  important  sessions, 
especially  during  the  Eeunion  of  the  Old  and  New- 
School  Presbyterian  churches.  At  one  of  the  earlier 
meetings  which  he  attended,  the  subject  of  ministerial 
relief  was  brought  up.  He  arose  and  told  the  following 
story.  Some  years  before,  he  had  heard  that  a  friend 
of  his,  minister  to  one  of  the  poorer  congregations  in 
New  York  City,  was  ill,  and  he  went  to  see  him.  He 
was  evidently  consumptive,  and  told  Mr.  Carter  that 
his  physician  had  said  that  he  ought  to  go  South,  as  he 
could  not  live  through  the  Northern  winter.  "  Why 
do  you  not  start  at  once  ? "  said  Mr.  Carter ;  "  it  is 
cold  weather  now."  The  sick  man  requested  his  wife 
to  leave  the  room,  and  said,  "  Mr.  Carter,  I  have  not  a 
dollar  in  the  world.  My  people  can  do  nothing  more 
for  me.  The  doctor  wants  me  to  borrow  money  to  go 
South  as  a  means  of  saving  my  life,  but  I  am  not  will- 
ing to  run  the  risk  of  leaving  my  family  with  a  burden 
of  debt,  if  I  am  to  die  after  all."  Mr.  Carter  was  a  poor 
man  then  himself,  but  he  started  a  subscription,  giving 
all  he  could,  and  went  about  among  his  friends  asking 
for  help.  The  sympathies  of  one  benevolent  lady  were 
so  aroused,  that  she  got  into  her  sleigh  in  the  midst  of 
a  blinding  snow-storm  and  collected  from  her  relatives, 
and  Mr.  Carter  went  in  a  few  days  with  five  hundred  dol- 
lars to  the  poor  invalid,  and  laid  the  money  on  the  coun- 
terpane before  him.     The  good  man  clasped  his  hands. 


GENERAL  ASSEMBLIES.  191 

and  with  streaming  eyes  thanked  God  for  his  great 
bounty  towards  him.  Then,  turning  to  Mr.  Carter,  he 
said,  "  You  and  your  friends  have  been  very  good  to  me. 
I  never  had  so  much  money  in  my  life  before.  I  can- 
not go  South  ;  I  feel  that  I  am  growing  worse  every  day, 
and  that  it  is  better  for  me  to  stay  at  home.  But  this 
money  will  be  a  provision  for  my  family,  and  I  feel 
confident  that  the  Lord  who  has  dealt  so  graciously 
with  me  will  be  with  my  wife  and  children  after  I  am 
gone."  After  his  death,  his  wife  went  into  business  in 
a  very  small  way,  keeping  what  was  called  a  thread 
and  needle  shop.  She  had  a  hard  struggle,  but  found 
friends,  and  was  never  forsaken. 

From  this  story  Mr.  Carter  made  an  urgent  appeal 
that  the  church  at  large  should  do  systematically  what 
a  few  friends  had  done  in  this  individual  case.  Many 
of  the  friends  of  ministerial  relief  have  spoken  of  a  new 
interest  in  the  cause  dating  from  this  speech. 

In  1863,  Mr.  Carter  was  a  delegate  to  the  Old  School 
Assembly  at  Peoria.  It  was  in  the  early  days  of  the 
Eeunion  movement,  and  friendly  resolutions  were  ex- 
changed with  the  New  School  Assembly,  meeting  at 
Philadelphia.  The  following  year,  1864,  he  was  again 
a  delegate  at  Newark,  New  Jersey.  Here  an  informal 
meeting  of  ministers  and  elders  was  held  for  conference 
upon  the  expediency  and  feasibility  of  organic  Eeunion. 

In  November,  1867,  he  went  as  a  delegate  to  a  great 
National  Presbyterian  Convention,  held  in  Philadelphia, 
'■'  for  prayer  and  conference  in  regard  to  the  terms  of 
union  and  communion  among  the  various  branches  of 
the  Presbyterian  family."  The  call  for  this  convention 
originated  with  his  old  and  valued  friend,  George  H. 
Stuart,  Esq.,  who  presided  over  the  meetings.  On  the 
first  morning  there  was  an  elders'  prayer  meeting  at 


192         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

nine  o'clock,  and  at  ten  o'clock  a  general  prayer  meet- 
ing presided  over  by  the  Eev.  B.  W.  Chidlaw,  of  Ohio, 
another  loved  and  honored  friend  of  Mr.  Carter's.  Mr. 
Chidlaw  has  authorized  the  following  quotation  from 
his  book,  "  The  Story  of  my  Life." 

"  At  the  expiration  of  the  half-hour,  I  received  a  note 
from  the  chairman  of  the  committee  to  nominate  permanent 
officers,  asking  the  continuance  of  the  prayer  meeting  for 
fifteen  minutes,  when  they  would  be  ready  to  report.  After 
reading  the  note,  I  requested  some  brother  to  lead  in  prayer. 
The  response  lingered.  Just  then  I  caught  the  eye  of  Rob- 
ert Carter,  of  New  York,  and  asked  him  to  pray.  He  stood 
up  before  the  Lord,  and  in  Scriptural  language  bewailed  and 
confessed  the  sin  of  division,  his  voice  tremulous  and  pene- 
trating, and  full  of  pathos ;  then,  as  if  relieved  of  a  heavy 
burden,  he  pleaded  earnestly  for  the  fulfilment  of  the  Sav- 
iour's prayer  for  the  unity  of  his  people  and  the  spread  of 
the  Gospel  at  home  and  abroad. 

"  This  prayer  was  a  wonderful  outpouring  of  a  soul  en- 
dowed with  an  unction  from  the  Holy  One,  and  its  effect  on 
the  audience  was  marvellous,  melted  into  tears  and  awe- 
struck in  the  presence  of  our  prayer-hearing  and  prayer- 
answering  God.  The  unbroken  silence  that  followed  told 
the  impression  produced.  We  were  dumb  before  the  Lord, 
whose  presence  we  so  fully  realized. 

"  The  committee  reported,  and  their  nominations  were 
unanimously  confirmed.  They  had  failed  to  agree,  and 
wanted  further  time.  At  the  last  moment,  and  in  a  way 
that  they  knew  not,  they  harmonized  during  the  time  when 
Robert  Carter  was  in  prayer,  became  of  one  mind,  and 
united  in  presenting  their  report.  It  was  said  that  Rev. 
Dr.  Musgrave,  a  leader  in  the  Old  School,  rather  indifferent, 
if  not  opposed,  to  Reunion,  was  so  impressed  with  the 
prayer  of  Robert  Carter  that  he  became  one  of  its  strongest 
friends  and  ablest  advocates." 


JvATIONAL   PRESBYTERIAN   CONVENTION.         193 

Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  says  that,  afterwards,  "  One  of 
the  members  of  the  committee  was  anxious  to  have  the 
report  recommitted,  not  to  change  its  essential  features 
in  any  particular,  but  that  so  important  a  document 
might  have  the  benefit  of  a  little  more  careful  revision 
from  a  literary  point  of  view.  A  motion  to  this  effect 
was  made  soon  after  the  Convention  was  opened,  but 
was  strongly  opposed  by  Dr.  Musgrave,  who  had  been 
regarded  as  an  opponent  of  union,  on  the  ground 
that  the  report  came  in  answer  to  the  prayers  of  the 
Convention,  which  had  spent  tlie  time  that  the  com- 
mittee had  been  deliberating  in  prayer  for  their  guid- 
ance. So  the  motion  to  recommit  was  withdrawn." 
Mr.  Stuart  refers  to  this  prayer  as  one  "  of  wonderful 
fervor,  which  seemed  to  touch  every  heart."  Some  one 
else  has  referred  to  this  prayer  as  an  "  effectual,  fervent 
prayer  of  a  righteous  man,  which  prevailed  on  earth  as 
well  as  in  heaven."  "  As  a  prince  hast  thou  power  with 
God  and  with  men,  and  hast  prevailed." 

This  convention  was  a  season  of  unbounded  pleasure 
to  Mr.  Carter.  He  loved  to  speak  of  the  many  striking 
and  dramatic  scenes  which  characterized  it,  and  which 
are  familiar  to  most  Presbyterian  readers,  for  this  was  the 
period  of  the  crystallization  of  the  Eeunion  movement. 

It  was  announced  to  the  Convention  that  especial 
prayer  had  been  offered  for  the  success  of  the  Reunion  at 
the  annual  meeting  of  the  Evangelical  Societies  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  which  was  in  progress  in  Philadelphia 
at  that  time.  A  committee,  consisting  of  Dr.  Henry 
B.  Smith,  Dr.  J.  M.  Stevenson,  the  Hon.  Judge  Drake, 
and  Mr.  Robert  Carter,  was  appointed  to  convey  frater- 
nal greetings  to  the  Episcopal  brethren.  They  were 
received  with  the  utmost  enthusiasm,  the  whole  congre- 
gation  rising  to  welcome  them.     The  Episcopal   As- 

13 


194  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

sembly  resolved  to  attend  the  Presbyterian  Convention 
in  a  body  the  next  morning,  and  be  present  while 
Bishops  Mcllvaine  and  Lee  and  others  presented  their 
salutations.  A  most  striking  and  interesting  scene  in 
this  reception  was  when  the  venerable  Bishop  Charles 
Mcllvaine  and  the  equally  venerable  Dr.  Charles  Hodge 
sprang  to  each  other's  embrace  upon  the  platform,  each 
greeting  the  other  as  "  Charlie,"  as  in  the  old  famil- 
iar days  when  they  were  together  in  Princeton  College 
and  Seminary. 

Afterwards  Dr.  Hodge  said,  "  I  hope  this  audience 
will  pardon  a  reference  which  might  seem  personal 
under  any  other  circumstances  than  the  present.  You, 
Bishop  Mcllvaine,  and  Bishop  Johns,  whom  I  had 
hoped  to  see  on  this  occasion,  and  I  were  boys  together 
in  Princeton  College  fifty  years  ago.  Evening  after 
evening  have  we  knelt  together  in  prayer.  We  were 
baptized  in  spirit  together  in  the  great  revival  of  1815 
in  that  institution,  we  sat  together  year  after  year  in  the 
same  class-rooms,  and  we  were  instructed  by  the  same 
venerable  theological  teachers.  You  have  gone  your 
way  and  I  mine  ;  but  I  will  venture  to  say  that  I  do  not 
believe  that  in  all  that  time  you  have  preached  any 
one  sermon  which  I  would  not  have  rejoiced  to  have 
delivered.  I  feel  the  same  confidence  in  saying  that 
I  never  preached  a  sermon  which  you  would  not  have 
cordially  indorsed.  Here  we  now  stand,  gray-headed, 
side  by  side,  after  more  than  fifty  years,  the  repre- 
sentatives of  these  two  great  bodies,  feeling  for  each 
other  the  same  intimate  and  cordial  love,  looking  not 
backwards,  not  downwards,  at  the  grave  at  our  very 
feet,  but  onward  to  the  coming  glory.  Sir,  were  not 
your  Church  and  ours  rocked  in  the  same  cradle  ?  Have 
they    not  passed  through  the  same  Red  Sea  of  trial  ? 


REUNION.  195 

Did  they  not  receive  the  same  baptism  of  the  Spirit  ? 
What  difference  is  there  between  the  Thirty-Nine 
Articles  and  our  Confession  greater  than  the  differ- 
ence between  the  different  parts  of  one  great  cathedral 
anthem  that  rises  to  the  skies.  We  stand  here  to  de- 
clare to  the  whole  world  that  we  are  one  in  faith,  one  in 
baptism,  and  one  in  allegiance  to  our  Lord." 

This  interview  between  two  of  his  beloved  friends 
was  very  delightful  to  Mr.  Carter,  who  always  loved  to 
dwell  upon  its  memory. 

The  following  year,  1868,  Mr.  Carter  was  again  a 
delegate  to  the  General  Assembly,  which  met  in  Al- 
bany, and  at  which  the  subject  of  Eeunion  was  the 
prominent  topic.  Towards  the  close  of  the  session, 
which  was  a  very  exciting  one,  a  committee,  consisting 
of  Drs.  Beatty  and  Eeed,  and  Elders  Eobert  Carter  and 
Henry  Day,  was  sent  to  confer  with  the  New  School 
Assembly  at  Harrisburg.  They  were  very  kindly  and 
warmly  received,  and,  after  speeches  from  each  member 
of  the  committee.  Dr.  Nelson  rose  and  asked  Mr.  Car- 
ter if  he  would  answer  a  few  questions.  "  Certainly.'' 
"  What  is  the  position  of  the  Old  School  Assembly  in 
regard  to  Reunion  ? "  Mr.  Carter  replied,  that  a  large 
majority  favored  it  heartily,  but  that  he  must  acknowl- 
edge that  a  minority  were  opposed  to  it.  "  What  is  the 
character  of  that  minority  ? "  "  It  is  mostly  composed 
of  the  older  men  whom  we  honor  as  fathers.  But  may 
I  not  plead  that  the  greatest  consideration  should  be 
bestowed  on  these  venerable  men  ?  Let  me  tell  an  inci- 
dent which  occurred  many  years  ago  in  Scotland.  The 
old  Earl  of  Kilmarnock  and  his  son  fought  on  opposite 
sides  at  the  battle  of  Culloden.  After  the  victory, 
the  son  was  standing  with  a  party  of  officers  on  the 
field  when  a  company  of  prisoners   were  brought  in, 


196  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

among  them  the  old  Earl,  bare-headed,  his  white  hair 
streaming  in  the  wind.  The  son  spoke  no  word,  but 
stejjped  forward  and  placed  his  own  hat  on  the  head  of 
his  father.  So  should  we  bear  ourselves  to  those  loved 
and  honored  fathers,  who  conscientiously  dissent  from 
us."  The  New  School  brethren  had  been  feeling  a  little 
restive  under  the  slower  movements  of  the  Old  School 
Assembly,  but  "  these  words  produced  a  profound  im- 
pression, and  were  among  the  gentle  and  Christ-like  influ- 
ences which  smoothed  over  all  difficulties,  and  brought 
about  at  length  the  reunion  of  the  Church." 

Dr.  Ellin  wood,  from  whom  the  last  sentence  is  quoted, 
adds :  "  This  incident  was  characteristic  of  Mr.  Carter 
in  all  his  relations,  and  in  all  his  Christian  activities. 
This  same  spirit  which  favored  progress  on  the  one 
hand,  and  conciliation  and  forbearance  on  the  other, 
characterized  his  whole  course.  As  a  rule,  he  voted 
for  every  wise  measure  of  progress.  There  was  a  bright 
and  hopeful  energy  to  his  mind  even  to  fourscore  years. 
He  was  not  bound  to  the  past.  He  expected  progress, 
as  he  earnestly  prayed  for  it.  He  realized  that  many  of 
the  old  moulds  and  measurements  must  be  outgrown." 

After  leaving  the  New  School  Assembly  at  Harris- 
burg,  Mr.  Carter  returned  to  his  own  Assembly  at 
Albany,  and  made  his  report  with  the  others  of  his 
committee.  He  was  then  sent  to  convey  the  greetings 
of  the  Old  School  Assembly  to  the  United  Presbyterian 
General  Assembly  at  Argyle,  New  York.  There  he 
met  with  a  hearty  Scotch  reception,  and  made  a  most 
felicitous  speech.  Thus  he  on  three  successive  days 
addressed  three  separate  General  Assemblies. 

In  1869,  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  General  Assembly 
meeting  at  New  York,  at  which  Reunion  was  consum- 
mated.    He  was  a  member  of  the  Conference  Committee 


REUNION.  197 

to  prepare  the  plan  of  Eeunion,  and  he  entered  with  all 
his  heart  into  the  work,  and  into  the  rejoicing  over  its 
accomplishment.  It  was  a  great  delight  to  him  to  take 
part  in  the  adjourned  meeting  of  the  Assemhly,  which 
took  place  at  Pittsburg,  in  November,  1869.  All  the 
jubilation  over  Reunion  was  entirely  after  his  own 
mind.  There  was  no  happier  heart  in  the  procession, 
as  Old  School  and  New,  after  pouring  out  of  their  re- 
spective places  of  assembly,  met  in  the  street  and  formed 
ranks  anew,  "  the  Old  and  New  grasping  each  other, 
and  amidst  welcomes,  thanksgivings,  and  tears,  they 
locked  arms  and  stood  together  in  their  reformed  rela- 
tions." At  the  end  of  the  grand  Reunion  meeting  in  the 
First  Church  of  Pittsburg,  "the  Moderator  called  on 
Mr.  Robert  Carter,  Ruling  Elder  from  New  York,  to 
offer  prayer.  This  he  did  with  great  unction,  and,  in 
hearty  sympathy  with  the  occasion,  the  great  Assembly 
melted  together  at  the  throne  of  grace." 

The  following  year  Mr.  Carter  met  again  with  the  re- 
united Assembly  at  Philadelphia,  and  bore  his  share  in 
the  great  work  of  reorganization.  He  was  afterwards  a 
delegate  to  Baltimore  and  Buffalo,  but  was  obliged  to 
leave  Buffalo  before  the  close  of  the  session,  and  was 
told  by  his  physician  that  a  man  of  his  age  should  not 
again  attempt  sitting  in  a  deliberative  body. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

ONE  of  the  authors  to  whom  Mr.  Carter  was  friend 
as  well  as  publisher  was  the  Rev.  Dr.  Cuyler. 
He  kindly  furnishes  the  following  reminiscences  of 
their    intercourse. 

"  The  first  time  I  saw  my  honored  and  beloved  friend, 
Robert  Carter,  was  about  fifty-two  years  ago. 

"  I  was  then  a  schoolboy  of  sixteen,  reviewing  my  studies 
in  the  Grammar  School  of  the  New  York  University  in 
preparation  to  enter  Princeton  College.  He  was  then  keep- 
ing the  little  bookstore  in  Canal  Street,  which  had  lately 
become  somewhat  famous  and  popular  by  the  issue  of  the 
cheap  edition  of  Merle  d'Aubigne's  *  History  of  the  Refor- 
mation.' My  good  mother  took  me  there  with  her  when 
she  was  in  pursuit  of  some  devotional  books,  such  as  Jay's 
*  Morning  Exercises.'  He  had  a  taste  and  appetite  for  that 
class  of  savory  books,  as  a  Scotchman  has  for  oatmeal  por- 
ridge and  Finnan  baddies,  and  those  who  relished  strong 
spiritual  food  knew  that  they  would  find  it  at  the  modest 
shop  in  Canal  Street.  Ministers  resorted  there  somewhat 
on  Monday  mornings ;  but  they  came  in  much  larger  num- 
bers when  he  opened  his  more  extensive  bookstore  in  Broad- 
way, near  Chambers  Street.  It  was  there  that  I  formed  my 
first  personal  acquaintance  with  him,  about  the  year  1850. 
It  soon  ripened  into  friendship  ;  and  I  have  known  him  in- 
timately and  loved  him  warmly  for  forty  years. 

"  Some  of  our  most  delightfid  intercourse  was  at  Sara- 
toga, where  we  spent  several  summers  together  under  the 


LETTER  FROM  DR.  CUYLER.         199 

roof  of  Dr.  Strong.  He  was  a  great  favorite  there  with 
everybody ;  and  when  he  sat  down  for  a  talk  on  the  piazza, 
the  guests  used  to  gather  round  and  listen  to  his  lively  rem- 
iniscences and  vivacious  conversation,  which  was  always 
'  seasoned  with  salt.'  He  was  genial  and  relished  pleasan- 
tries, but  he  was  never  frivolous.  Into  the  daily  exercises  of 
family  worship  he  e:itered  with  all  his  heart ;  and  his  pray- 
ers were  wonderfully  rich  in  expression  and  full  of  holy 
unction.  The  singing  he  enjoyed  hugely,  and  I  well  remem- 
ber the  first  time  he  heard  that  simple  hymn,  ••  The  Sweet 
By  and  By,'  with  its  beautiful  melody,  it  so  delighted  him 
that  he  went  to  the  lady  and  asked  her  to  sing  it  again  for 
him. 

"  He  used  to  drive  out  with  his  wife  in  the  summer  after- 
noons, and  often  invited  me  to  accompany  them.  We 
scoured  together  all  the  country  roads  around  Saratoga ;  and 
we  had  some  rare  talks  about  old  and  cherished  friends,  such 
as  Dr.  James  Hamilton,  Dr.  Guthrie,  and  good  old  Dr.  John 
Griscom,  who  had  been  almost  his  earliest  friend  and  adviser 
upon  his  arrival  in  America.  I  knew  Griscom  well,  and  how 
dearly  he  was  attached  to  Robert  Carter. 

"  It  was  at  Saratoga  that  he  delivered  that  remarkable 
address  before  the  '  State  Institute  of  Teachers '  at  one  of 
their  annual  meetings.  In  that  address  he  narrated  in  the 
most  racy  style  the  story  of  his  childhood  in  Earlston,  and 
the  struggle  through  which  he  passed  in  gaining  his  early 
education.  It  was  very  like  the  story  which  the  great  mis- 
sionary, John  G.  Paton,  tells  of  his  own  boyhood  in  his 
godly  father's  cottage  in  Dumfriesshire.  The  address 
was  listened  to  with  the  keenest  delight  by  the  whole 
assembly. 

"  When  we  got  home  I  said  to  him,  '  Brother  Carter,  you 
ought  to  write  out  and  print  that  charming  bit  of  autobiog- 
raphy ;  it  is  as  racy  as  Benjamin  Franklin's  story  of  his  own 
boyhood  and  youth.'  It  is  from  such  pictures  of  personal 
experience  that  we  get  our  best  insight  into  the  heart  and 


200         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

home  life  of  the  past  generation.  Even  dear  old  Scotland 
is  changing  so  fast,  that  the  manner  of  life  depicted  by  him 
and  by  Paton  will  soon  be  a  beautiful  reminiscence  of  things 
utterly  departed. 

"In  1862  I  met  Mr.  Carter  in  London,  and  we  attended 
together  a  service  preparatory  to  the  communion  in  Dr. 
James  Hamilton's  Regent  Square  Presbyterian  Church. 
That  man  of  blessed  memory,  Dr.  Amot,  was  with  us.  I 
gave  a  brief  discourse  on  '  Love-service  for  Jesus,*  and  we 
all  had  a  pleasant  interview  afterwards.  Those  three  beloved 
friends,  Hamilton,  Arnot,  and  Carter,  are  now  together  'be- 
fore the  throne  of  God  and  of  the  Lamb.' 

"  In  the  last  letter  that  I  ever  received  from  Dr.  John 
Brown,  the  immortal  author  of  '  Eab  and  his  Friends,'  the 
Doctor  wrote,  *  Give  my  love  to  dear  old  Robert  Carter,  and 
tell  him  that  Earlston  still  flourishes.' 

''The  hours  which  I  have  spent  with  your  venerated 
father  were  among  the  happiest  and  most  profitable  of  my 
life.  He  was  a  full  man,  and  his  talk  was  like  turning  the 
faucet  of  a  reservoir.  His  letters  also  were  the  outflow  of  a 
beautiful  and  sincere  aff"ection.  He  belonged  to  that  re- 
markable group  of  New  York  laymen  which  embraced  also 
such  choice  spirits  as  Apollos  R.  Wetmore,  William  B. 
Crosby,  Theodore  Frelinghuysen,  James  Lenox,  and  Wil- 
liam E.  Dodge.  To  him  the  Church  of  Christ  and  many 
a  movement  of  Christian  philanthropy  owe  a  debt  of  pro- 
found gratitude.  He  contributed  more  than  monej-,  he  gave 
himself. 

"  It  was  a  precious  privilege  to  spend  a  half-hour  with 
my  beloved  old  friend  when  he  was  lying  calmly  on  that 
pillow  from  which  in  a  few  days  he  passed  sweetly  into 
heaven.  His  blood-washed  spirit  was  already  in  the  'land 
of  Beulah,'  and  in  the  full  view  of  the  Celestial  City.  Having 
lived  so  long  and  so  well,  he  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  die. 
Death  was  to  him  the  translation  to  glory.  When  he  left 
us,   he  left   no  more  sturdy   or  steadfast  servant  of   God 


PRESIDENT  HOPKINS.  201 

behind  him.  I  rejoice  that  I  had  such  a  happy  friend- 
ship with  him  for  forty  years,  and  shall  always  cherish 
the  memory  of  my  revered  and  beloved  friend,  Robert 
Carter." 

The  visits  to  Saratoga  were  very  delightful  to  Mr. 
Carter.  Dr.  Strong's  house  was  a  sort  of  ministerial 
caravansary,  and  the  society  was  very  congenial.  For 
a  time  he  went  there  every  summer  for  a  few  weeks, 
and  once,  when  recovering  from  a  long  and  severe  ill- 
ness, was  there  for  three  months.  That  summer  Dr. 
Mark  Hopkins  was  there  for  a  while,  and  they  had 
long  talks  on  the  piazza  together.  The  grand  old 
Doctor  had  just  resigned  the  presidency  of  Williams 
College.  In  one  of  their  chats,  he  told  Mr.  Carter  that 
his  dear  friend,  Mr.  William  E.  Dodge,  had  for  some 
years  supplemented  the  President's  salary  by  giving 
him  the  interest  of  $30,000.  When  he  resigned  the 
presidency,  he  said  to  the  directors  that  he  could  no 
longer  take  this,  but  it  must  go  to  his  successor.  The 
directors  told  him  that  he  must  settle  that  with  Mr. 
Dodge.  Accordingly  Dr.  Hopkins  spoke  to  him  about 
it.  Mr.  Dodge  made  answer,  "  You  may  do  as  you 
please  about  taking  the  money,  but  it  was  intended 
for  you  personally,  and  not  as  President,  and  if  you  do 
not  accept  it,  it  reverts  to  me.  Tf  you  take  it  as  long 
as  you  live,  at  your  death  it  will  go  to  the  College." 
With  the  utmost  simplicity.  Dr.  Hopkins,  after  finish- 
ing the  story,  said,  "  Mr.  Carter,  wdiat  could  I  do  ? " 
With  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  Mr.  Carter  responded. 
"Surely  there  was  but  one  course  open  to  you." 

Another  incident  of  this  summer  was  connected  with 
the  Kev.  Joel  Parker,  D.D.,  who  was  spending  some 
weeks  with  his  wife  at  Dr.  Strong's,  and  with  whom 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carter  became  quite  intimate.     One  day 


202         LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

a  man  came  to  Mr.  Carter  seeking  a  supply  for  a 
church  a  few  miles  ofif,  and  asked  him  if  there  were 
any  good  preachers  at  Dr.  Strong's.  Mr.  Carter  told 
him  he  could  find  no  one  better  than  Dr.  Parker,  and 
accordingly  brought  the  two  together.  Dr.  Parker 
agreed  to  preach,  and  after  going  through  the  day's 
services  one  of  the  trustees  asked  him  what  he  charged. 
He  made  answer,  that  he  was  not  accustomed  to  make 
a  charge,  but  took  whatever  the  congregation  thought 
right  to  give.  "  I  suppose  your  return  ticket  cost  you 
one  dollar  and  eighty  cents.  Here  are  two  dollars, — 
never  mind  the  change."  When  Dr.  Parker  returned 
and  told  his  story  to  a  group  of  ministerial  friends, 
there  was  a  good  deal  of  laughter  at  his  expense,  and 
one  of  the  listeners  said,  "  Mr.  Carter  got  you  the  job, 
and  you  ought  to  divide  the  profits  with  him.  You 
certainly  owe  him  ten  cents."  "  On  the  contrary," 
said  Mr.  Carter,  "Dr.  Parker  ought  to  hav^e  received 
at  least  twenty  dollars  for  his  services,  and  I  ought  to 
share  the  loss,  and  here  are  the  ten  dollars." 

Mr.  Carter  while  at  Saratoga  regularly  attended  the 
noonday  prayer  meeting,  and  frequently  took  part  in 
it.  Prayer  was  to  him  "vital  breath"  and  "native 
air."  He  went  to  such  meetings,  not  from  a  mere 
sense  of  duty,  but  from  keen  enjoyment. 

Another  author  with  whom  Mr.  Carter  had  very  de- 
lightful relations  was  Dr.  Bickersteth,  now  Bishop  of 
Exeter.  He  had  long  known  and  loved  the  Bi.shop"s 
father,  Eev.  Edward  Bickersteth,  one  of  England's  most 
saintly  clergymen,  and  when  the  son  published  "Yes- 
terday, To-day,  and  Forever,"  Mr.  Carter  read  it  with 
exceeding  pleasure.  He  at  once  brought  it  out  in 
America,  and  it  was  one  of  his  most  successful  pub- 
lications,   reaching   a   circulation   of    more   than   fifty 


BISHOP  BICKERSTETH.  203 

thousand  copies.  Dr.  Bickersteth  was  from  this  time 
one  of  his  regular  correspondents,  and  when  he  visited 
America,  in  1870,  they  had  much  tender  intercourse. 
Two  letters  of  Dr.  Bickersteth's  are  here  inserted. 
The  first  bears  date  November  10,  1871:  — 

"  I  was  so  grieved  to  hear  from  Dr.  Ray  Palmer  this  week 
that  you  have  been  suffering  from  intermittent  fever.  I 
fear  from  what  your  brother  wrote,  two  or  three  months 
ago,  that  you  have  been  far  from  strong  this  summer,  but 
had  cherished  the  hope  that  the  change  of  air  would  have 
recruited  you.  But  our  Father's  ways  are  not  as  ours, —  only, 
however,  because  they  are  so  infinitely  higher,  wiser,  better, 
and  tenderer.  And  you,  dear  friend,  who  have  proved  His 
love  for  so  many  years  of  j^our  pilgrimage  will  find  His  ever- 
lasting arms  beneath  you,  and  His  Spirit's  consolations  over 
you  in  your  hours  of  weakness.  'Jesus  constrained  his  disci- 
ples to  get  into  a  ship,'  though  He  knew  the  tempestuous, 
weary  night  was  before  them.  Yet  He  was  praying  for  them 
on  the  mountain  top,  and  at  His  own  chosen  hour,  in  the 
fourth  watch  towards  morning,  He  came  when  they  were 
least  expecting  him,  saying,  '  It  is  I,  be  not  afraid.'  May 
He  thus  speak  to  your  heart,  and  manifest  Himself  to  you 
as  not  to  the  world,  and  fill  you  with  the  joy  of  His  presence 
and  His  peace,  and  if  it  be  His  gracious  will,  raise  you  up  to 
testify  in  after  years  that  He  is  indeed  a  watchful  Friend  in 
sori'ow,  —  the  Brother  born  for  adversity.  I  must  not  at- 
tempt to  write  more,  for  I  know  sickness  cannot  bear  many 
words,  but  must  assure  you  that  our  poor  prayers  will  be 
with  you  and  with  your  anxious  loving  wife,  to  whom  and  to 
your  brother  please  convey  my  most  grateful  remembrances." 

The  second  letter  is  dated  from  Cromer,  Norfolk, 
August  24,  1873  :  — 

"  I  do  not  know  whether  the  great  sorrow  which  has  shad- 
owed my  home  will  have  caught  your  eye  in  any  English 


204         LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

paper,  but  on  August  2d  my  fondly  loved  wife  was  called 
to  her  rest,  after  only  three  days'  serious  illness,  in  this  lonely 
seaside  place,  whither  we  had  come  for  a  few  weeks'  recrea- 
tion. It  was  heart  complaint.  I  had  no  serious  fear  until 
late  on  Wednesday,  July  30th,  and  at  four  o'clock  on  Satur- 
day morning  my  beloved  one  was  with  her  Saviour. 

"  Not  a  shadow  of  fear  clouded  her  peaceful  and  holy 
death-bed.  She  gathered  our  twelve  children  all  around 
her  bed,  and  spoke  words  of  priceless  love  and  motherly 
counsel  to  each. 

"  You  will  pray  for  us. 

"  The  Lord  gave  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away ;  blessed 
be  the  name  of  the  Lord.  The  Voice  has  been  heard  every 
hour,  '  It  is  I,'  and  Jesus  has  been  with  me  in  the  deep,  deep 
waters  which  have  gone  over  my  soul.  He  has  been  so  near 
and  so  tender !  There  has  not  been  one  drop  of  bitterness 
in  the  deep  cup  of  sorrow,  —  nothing  but  love,  Divine  love, 
the  love  we  cannot  fathom  or  explain. 

*'  ^Ve  return  to  our  shadowed  home,  D.  V.,  next  week. 
You  will,  I  know,  pray  for  us.  Will  you  forward  this  note  to 
dear  Dr.  Tyng  and  Dr.  Ray  Palmer.  I  find  it  very  difficult 
to  write  all  the  letters  which  my  heart  prompts  me  to  send. 
But  it  is  sweet  to  think  how  much  brotherly  love  will  pour 
itself  out  for  us  in  prayer  in  America. 

"  Believe  ever,  in  the  bonds  of  the  Gospel,  your  sorely 
stricken  and  yet  comforted  friend." 

Another  very  intimate  and  beloved  friend  was  Eev. 
Dr.  Muhlenberg,  so  long  prominent  in  benevolent  work. 
He  was  a  kindred  spirit  with  'Mr.  Carter,  who  entered 
heartily  into  the  Doctor's  philanthropic  schemes,  which 
gave  constant  opportunities  for  their  being  together.  Dr. 
Muhlenberg  spent  his  latter  days  at  St.  Luke's  Hospital, 
which  he  himself  founded,  and  A^hich  is  his  appropriate 
monument.  In  his  last  illness  Mr.  Carter  constantly 
visited  him  there,  and  used  to  say  he  was  like  St.  John 


GOLDEN  WEDDING.  205 

in  Patmos,  with  his  thoughts  filled  with  bright  visions 
of  the  celestial  country  he  was  so  soon  to  enter.  Their 
communion  was  most  sweet,  and  it  was  a  very  precious 
memory  to  Mr.  Carter  that  at  their  last  interview  Dr. 
Muhlenberg  drew  him  towards  him  for  a  farewell  em- 
brace and  kiss. 

On  March  18,  1884,  came  the  Golden  Wedding  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carter.  The  family  had  been  looking 
forward  to  it  as  a  time  of  special  rejoicing,  though  all 
the  wedding  days  were  regularly  kept.  On  this  there 
was  to  have  been  as  great  a  jubilation  as  Mrs.  Carter's 
very  feeble  health  would  allow,  but  just  the  week  before 
she  was  stricken  down  with  a  very  dangerous  illness, 
and  almost  passed  through  the  gates  of  death.  When 
the  wedding  day  came,  though  convalescent,  she  was 
confined  to  her  bed,  and  none  were  admitted  to  her  room 
but  her  children,  who  assembled  about  her,  offering  their 
congratulations  very  quietly.  It  had  been  arranged 
that  each  one  of  the  children  and  grandchildren  should 
write  them  a  congratulatory  letter,  and  these  letters 
were  afterwards  bound  together  in  a  book  with  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Carter's  pictures.  This  was  an  entire  surprise  to 
the  recipients,  and  gave  them  the  greatest  possible 
pleasure.  The  letter  of  the  oldest  son  is  here  inserted 
as  giving  an  idea  of  the  volume. 

"  As  I  begin  to  write  to  congratulate  you  on  the  fiftieth  re- 
turn of  your  wedding  anniversary,  there  come  floating  through 
my  brain  a  host  of  texts  from  that  volume,  which,  thanks 
to  your  training,  has  become  the  best  loved  and  most  studied 
of  all  books.  I  remember  with  gratitude  how  I  used  to  sit 
beside  mother  in  my  eighth  year  reading  the  Bible,  and 
asking  her  questions  about  its  meaning,  and  how  during  that 
year  I  finished  reading  the  good  book  through.  Thus  'from 
a  child'  I  have  'known  the  Scriptures,'  because  you  taught 


206  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

your  children  to  obey  the  command  and  '  search  the  Scrip- 
tures.* And  not  merely  did  you  teach  us  to  read  the  Bible 
and  explain  to  us  its  meaning,  but  your  lives  in  general  as 
seen  by  us  and  your  conduct  towards  us  in  particular  have 
given  object  lessons  enabling  us  to  understand  more  deeply 
and  appreciate  more  fully  than  many  can  the  meaning  of 
not  a  few  texts  of  Scripture. 

"  The  fatherhood  of  God  has  to  us  a  meaning  that  it  can- 
not have  to  many.  We  remember  how  as  faithful  parents 
you  have  chastened  us  for  our  profit,  and  also  how,  like  the 
father  of  the  prodigal,  you  have  watched  for  the  evidence  of 
repentance,  and  at  once  given  us  the  kindly  word  and  the 
assurance  of  forgiveness.  Our  relation  to  you  enables  us  to 
find  a  peculiar  preciousness  in  what  the  "Word  of  God  says 
about  the  Great  Father,  '  of  whom  the  whole  family  in  heaven 
and  earth  is  named.' 

"  We  remember  with  delight  the  gatherings  early  on 
winter  evenings  to  listen  to  Bible  stories  from  dear  mother, 
till  the  good  father  came  home  from  outside  work,  like  David, 
'  to  bless  his  house.'  The  happy  home  in  which  we  all  lived 
together  and  the  happy  home  where  we  still  delight  to  meet 
are  beautiful  types  of  the  Father's  house  in  which  we  all 
hope  to  dwell.  The  large-hearted  love  with  which  you  have 
always  welcomed  the  steadily  increasing  number  of  your 
children  to  a  New  England  place  o-f  rest,  gives  us  beautiful 
reminders  that  the  Father's  house  has  '  many  mansions,'  and 
that  '  yet  there  is  room '  for  us  all  where  some  of  us  have 
already  entered. 

"  And  when  sorrow  has  come,  how  unspeakably  precious 
has  been  your  sympathy,  which  has  taught  us  what  is  meant 
by  the  words,  '  Like  as  a  fother  pitieth  his  children,  so  the 
Lord  pitieth  them  that  fear  him,'  and,  *As  one  whom  his 
mother  comforteth,  so  will  I  comfort  you.' 

**  We  thank  God  that  our  parents  have  imitated  the 
Psalmist  in  his  resolve,  '  I  will  walk  within  my  house  with 
a  perfect  heart.'     We  rejoice  that  our  father  has  been  like 


FIFTY  YEARS  OF  BOOK-MAKING.  207 

Abraham,  '  who  commanded  his  children  and  his  household 
after  him,'  and  like  Joshua,  able  to  say,  *  As  for  me  and  my 
house  we  will  serve  the  Lord  ' ;  while  our  mother,  like  Han- 
nah and  like  Eunice,  has  dedicated  her  children  from  the 
birth  and  trained  them  in  the  fear  of  God.  When  we  think 
of  the  first  commandment  with  promise,  we  are  glad  that  we 
have  parents  whom  we  have  such  good  cause  to  honor. 
Though  we  each  have  families  of  our  own,  we  still  re- 
joice to  'hear  the  instruction  of  a  father,'  and  as  for  our 
mother,  'her  children  rise  up  and  call  her  blessed.'  May 
your  lives  long  be  spared,  that  we  may  long  enjoy  these 
privileges ! " 

Some  of  the  letters  from  the  grandsons  at  college 
were  very  full  of  fun,  dwelling  on  family  jokes,  and 
not  hesitating  to  indulge  in  what  might  be  called  teas- 
ing of  the  venerable  bride  and  groom.  Some  one  who 
read  the  letters  said,  "  Is  it  possible  that  a  man  of  Mr. 
Carter's  dignified  character  allows  his  grandchildren 
to  address  him  in  such  familiar  terms  ? "  "  You  little 
know  Mr.  Carter,"  was  the  reply,  "  if  you  imagine  that 
his  grandchildren  stand  in  awe  of  him.  They  them- 
selves do  not  enjoy  their  fun  more  than  he  does." 

Many  beautiful  gifts  were  sent  him,  some  of  them 
with  a  tender  sentiment  attached.  One  that  pleased 
him  much  was  a  vase  with  fifty  lovely  roses,  from  the 
printer  that  he  had  employed  for  fifty  years. 

On  the  1st  of  April  he  passed  the  fiftieth  anniver- 
sary of  entering  into  business.  The  publishers  of  New 
York  united  in  sending  him  the  following  testimonial. 

New  York,  April  1,  1884. 
Mr.  Robert  Carter,  New  York  : 

Dear  Sir,  —  Your  friends  and  associates  in  the  book- 
publishing  and  book-selling  trade  of  this  city  desire,  on  the 


208         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

fiftieth  anniversary  of  your  entrance  upon  the  business,  to 
convey  to  you  their  best  regards  and  congratulations. 

Some  of  us  are  the  sous  and  successors  of  your  early 
contemporaries  ;  others  are  the  representatives  of  a  later 
generation ;  but  the  good  will  and  kindly  feeling  which  you 
commanded  at  the  beginning,  you  have  continued  to  retain 
through  all  the  succeeding  years  of  an  honorable  career. 
In  your  fifty  years  of  business  life,  you  have  seen  the  won- 
derful growth  of  the  American  publishing  trade,  and  have 
borne  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  development  and  mainte- 
nance of  that  important  branch  which  you  originally  chose, 
and  to  which  you  have  ever  adhered.  You  have  survived, 
with  but  one  or  two  exceptions,  those  who  were  in  business 
when  you  began,  and  are  still  able  to  take  a  part  in  the 
management  of  your  well  established  house. 

In  all  these  years  of  activity  and  of  many  changes,  you 
have  made  no  enemies,  and  have  constantly  added  to  the 
number  of  your  friends.  You  have  conducted  an  exacting 
and  difl&cult  business  with  dignity  and  success,  and  in  the 
serene  years  of  later  life  are  permitted  to  fully  enjoy  the 
substantial  fruits  of  your  industrious  enterprise  and  unques- 
tioned fidelity. 

Be  pleased,  then,  on  this  notable  anniversary,  to  accept  our 
congratulations  and  hearty  good  wishes  for  your  continued 
health  and  prosperity,  and  believe  us. 

Very  sincerely,  yours, 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.  Baker,  Pratt,  cS;  Co. 

Jno.  Wiley  &  Son.  0.  M.  Dunham,  Manager  Cas- 

CoLLiNs  &  Brother.  sell  &  Co. 

G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons.  Henry  Holt  &  Co. 

DoDD,  Mead,  &  Co.  Charles  T.  Dillingham. 

IvisoN,    Blakeman,  Taylor,  &      Taintor  Bros.,  Merrill,  &  Co. 
Co.  The  American  News  Company. 

Sheldon  &  Company.  E.  P.  Dtjtton  &  Co. 

A.  C.  Armstrong  &  Son.  James  Pott  &  Co. 

Clark  &  Maynard.  T.  Whittaker. 

H.  E.  Simmons,  Bus.  Agt.  Am,       E.  &  J.  B.  Young  &  Co. 
Tract.  Soc.  Caleb  T.  Rowe. 


FII-TY   YEAKS   OF   BO(JK-MAKING.  2u9 

Phillips  &  Hunt.  Geo.  S.  Scofield. 

Harper  Bros.  A.  D.  F.  Randolph  &  Co. 

D.  Van  Nustrand.  Gavin  Houston,   Manager  of 

Chas.  S.  Francis.  T.  Nelson  &  Sons. 

David  G.  Francis.  Josepu    L.    Blamire,  Agt.  for 

George  R.  Lockwood  &  Son.               Geo.  Routledge  &  Sons, 

A  S.  Barnes  &  Co.  G.  W.  Carleton  &  Co. 

Chaeles  Scribner's  Sons.  F.  W.  Christern. 

There  were  many  notices  of  this  anniversary  in  the 
secular  press  and  also  in  religious  papers  of  all  denom- 
inations. From  an  article  in  the  Observer,  by  Mr. 
A.  1).  F.  Eandoljjh,  the  following  is  quoted  :  — 

"  You  will  agree  witli  ine  that  fifty  years  of  a  life  devoted 
as  this  has  been  to  the  making  of  books,  not  one  of  which 
might  make  men  worse,  but  ought  to  make  them  better, 
may  well  have  a  word  of  recognition  in  the  Observer.  .  .  . 
He  chose  to  be  a  publisher  of  religious  books  ;  to  his  early 
choice  he  has  ever  substantially  adhered,  while  from  the 
day  he  began  down  to  the  present  hour  he  has  never  for- 
gotten his  responsibility  as  a  publisher.  And  thus  for  half 
a  century  he  has  been  doing  a  wholesome,  honest,  beneficent 
work.  He  has  seen  great  changes,  —  seen  also  the  wonderful 
development  of  the  publishing  business  in  this  country.  He 
has  passed  though  many  seasons  of  general  business  depres- 
sion, and  yet  maintained  his  own  credit  unimpaired.  Year 
by  year,  as  his  business  gi-ew  into  larger  proportions,  he  still 
continued  to  conduct  it  with  dignity,  integrity,  and  success. 
He  has  kept  before  the  public  such  old  worthies  as  Matthew 
Henry,  Poole,  Rutherford,  Boston,  and  others  of  the  elder 
saints,  while  he  has  given  us  Chaliners  and  Guthrie  and 
Hamilton,  and  Ryle  and  Bonar  and  Macduff,  and  a  host  of 
other  theological  and  practical  writers,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
long  list  of  minor  authors,  —  those  wl)o  have  written  for 
children  and  young  people.  Not  an  evil  book  in  all  the  list, 
—  not  one  that  does  not  teach  some  important  truth.  Who 
can  estimate  the  value  and  extent  of  his  influence  as  a  pub- 

14 


210         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

lisher  ]  —  what  a  factor  it  has  been  in  the  religious  educa- 
tion of  the  country  1 

"  And  he  has  been  something  more  than  the  successful 
business  man.  In  the  church  and  its  benevolent  boards,  in 
assemblies  and  synods,  in  religious  and  educational  societies, 
as  among  his  brethren  in  the  trade,  he  has  ever  been  known 
not  only  for  the  consistency  of  his  walk,  but  for  the  wisdom 
of  his  counsel  and  the  constant  liberality  of  his  gifts. 

"  He  remains  still  vigorous,  cheerful,  hopeful,  still  inter- 
ested in  the  world's  needs  and  progress,  and  ever  ready  to 
aid  a  worthy  cause.  Beloved  and  honored  by  all  who  per- 
sonally know  him,  he  is  not  only  without  enemies,  but  with 
troops  of  friends  the  whole  world  over. 

"  So  much  have  I  ventured  to  say  to  the  public  through 
you  of  our  old  and  dear  friend,  who  has  so  long  been  a 
teacher  and  benefactor  of  his  fellow  men." 

To  this  Dr.  Samuel  Irenoeus  Prime  added  :  — 

"  He  was  the  first  publisher  whose  acquaintance  I  formed 
in  New  York,  and  the  acquaintance  ripened  into  a  pleasant 
friendship,  now  as  bright  as  it  ever  was.  In  all  these  years 
no  book  from  his  press  has  afforded  me  a  chance  (and  I 
have  kept  a  sharp  lookout)  for  unfavorable  criticism.  Every 
one  has  been  in  the  line  of  Christian  usefulness.  Men  who 
hold  views  of  religious  doctrine  not  in  the  same  line  with 
his  may  not  approve  of  them  all,  but  I  am  not  afraid  to  say 
that  good,  strong,  stalwart  Christian  citizens  are  fed  on  such 
meat  as  he  sells,  and  the  more  of  it  that  is  consumed,  the 
more  wholesome  and  happy  will  be  the  church  and  people. 

"  To  make  a  really  good  book  is  grand.  To  publish  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  such  books,  and  to  pass  half  a  century 
in  the  work,  is  sublime.  Therefore  I  congratulate  my  friend 
Robert  Carter  on  the  comfortable  completion  of  his  fifty 
years  as  a  publisher,  on  the  prosperity  of  his  business,  which 
has  abundantly  provided  for  him  in  his  old  age,  on  the 
j)3ace   and  happiness   with  which  the  evening   of  his  life  is 


DEATH   OF   HIS  WIFE.  211 

blessed,  and  on  the  assurance  that  his  sun  is  setting  to  rise  in 
eternal  day." 

We  here  insert  an  extract  from  a  letter  from  Dr. 
Macduff,  of  Glasgow,  which  was  received  about  this 
time.  It  was  one  of  many  in  which  this  dear  friend 
indulged  in  pleasant  reminiscence  of  intercourse  in  by- 
gone times.  The  letter  bears  date  Chiselhurst,  Kent, 
February  3,  1885. 

"  I  have  duly  received,  and  with  most  cordial  thanks,  your 
kind  letter  and  its  enclosures.  Can  it  be,  as  you  say,  twenty- 
four  years  since  you  and  I  met  in  Paris,  then  in  Geneva,  and 
on  a  chilly  early  morning  walked  up  and  down  the  railroad 
station  at  Basle  1  Yes,  and  another  memory  :  since  James 
Hamilton  and  myself  met  you  in  the  back  room  in  Berners 
Street,  the  former  hailing  you  in  the  broadest  of  broad 
Scotch  1  It  looks  all  so  dream-like  and  so  recent !  Then 
to  think  that  Hamilton,  Watson,  Taylor,  Murray,  and  old 
William  Nisbet,  whose  face  and  form  were  so  familiar  in  that 
*  Evangelical  haunt,'  are  all  passed  away  to  their  rest,  after 
having  done  in  their  various  ways  good  and  noble  duty  for 
the  Master.  You  and  I  God  has  in  His  great  mercy  still 
spared  to  wait  His  gracious  summons.  But  I  must  not 
wander  into  the  region  of  sentiment," 

The  spring  of  1885  brought  him  a  great  sorrow  in 
the  failing  health  of  his  son-in-law,  Eev.  I.  W.  Cochran, 
who  died  in  his  house  in  February,  1887.  This  he  was 
heard  to  say  was  the  greatest  grief  of  his  life,  until  in 
July  of  the  same  year  his  beloved  wife  was  taken  from 
him.  At  the  time  of  her  death,  they  were  staying  in  a 
beautiful  place  on  Long  Island  Sound,  where  for  some 
years  they  had  assembled  the  family  gathering  in  the 
summer.  As  there  was  no  church  near,  and  as  the 
party  was  a  very  large  one,  they  were  accustomed  on 


212         LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

Sundays  to  assemble  under  the  trees,  and  have  a  regular 
church  service  of  their  own  in  the  open  air,  at  which 
one  of  the  ministerial  sons  generally  preached.  The 
last  Sunday  of  her  life  was  a  perfectly  lovely  day,  and, 
as  usual,  this  open-air  service  was  very  delightful  to  her. 
She  greatly  enjoyed  the  reading  by  her  husband  of  a 
sermon  by  Spurgeon,  who  was  a  great  favorite  of  both. 
In  the  afternoon,  she  attended  the  usual  family  Sunday 
school,  and  through  the  day  there  was  much  singing  of 
her  favorite  hymns.  She  spoke  of  it  in  the  evening  as 
a  perfectly  liappy  Sabbath. 

The  next  day  she  was  not  very  well,  and  kept  her 
bed,  but  was  quietly  happy.  No  one  entered  her  room 
but  received  some  word  of  tenderness.  Afterwards 
many  of  the  loving  speeches  that  were  habitual  with 
her,  but  would  not  have  been  remembered  if  they  had 
not  been  her  last,  were  treasured  up  as  a  sacred  legacy 
by  those  to  whom  they  were  spoken. 

When  her  husband  awoke  on  Tuesday  morning,  he 
said  that  his  heart  went  up  in  thankfulness  to  God 
that  she  had  had  an  unusually  good  night,  for  ill  health 
often  made  her  wakeful.  He  dressed  quietly  that  he 
mi"ht  not  disturb  her,  and  then  noticed  that  her  head 
had  sunk  into  an  uncomfortable  position.  He  attempted 
to  raise  it,  and  saw  that  there  was  something  wrong, 
and  called  for  assistance.  A  doctor  was  hastily  sum- 
moned, and  said  that  she  had  had  a  stroke  of  apoplexy. 
She  lay  in  an  unconscious  state,  looking  as  if  asleep, 
and  breathing  softly  as  a  little  child,  until  about  two 
o'clock,  when  gently,  without  a  struggle,  she  went  home. 
After  she  had  passed  away,  her  husband  took  up  her 
lifeless  hand,  saying,  "  I  am  alone  now." 

His  grief  was  pathetic  in  its  gentleness  and  tender- 
ness and  submission.     He  said  over  and  over  again,  "  I 


DEATH   OF   HIS  WIFE.  213 

don't  want  to  murmur  ;  I  hope  I  don't  murmur."  But 
no  one  but  himself  would  ever  have  thought  of  using  the 
word  in  connection  with  his  saintly  though  deep-seated 
grief.  It  was  a  comfort  to  him  that  his  wife  was  spared 
all  suffering  in  death,  falHng  asleep  on  earth  to  wake  in 
heaven.  She  had  always  feared  death,  being  timid  and 
self-distrustful  in  her  disposition,  and  it  seemed  as  if 
God  had  mercifully  spared  her  all  knowledge  of  the 
great  change  that  was  taking  place  until  she  saw  Him, 
and  was  satisfied.  Hers  was  a  lovely  life,  crowned  with 
a  peaceful  death. 

Mr.  Carter  received  a  very  large  number  of  letters  of 
sympathy.  One  young  friend,  who  had  gone  to  a  West- 
ern home,  wrote :  "  I  cannot  forget  my  parting  with  her 
when  I  first  came  West.  She  told  me  that  she  felt  that 
she  should  never  see  me  again  on  earth,  and  directed  me 
to  live  close  to  my  early  teachings.  I  am  not  what  I 
should  be,  but  the  memory  of  those  loving  words  has 
often  been  the  cause  of  my  resisting  temptation,  and 
now  that  she  is  gone  to  that  better  land  above,  they  will 
be  the  more  vividly  impressed  on  my  memory." 

Dr.  Cuyler  wrote  :  — 

"  I  fear  that  the  anuouncement  which  I  see  in  the  New 
York  papers  means  that  your  dear  wife  is  no  more  !  No 
more  in  this  world,  except  in  the  hearts  of  her  loving  hus- 
band and  grateful  children.  To  be  no  more  here  is  to  be 
forever  with  the  Lord. 

"  If  this  be  indeed  your  life  companion  who  has  been 
taken,  (and  I  know  of  no  other  Eobert  Carter,)  then  T  ex- 
tend to  you  my  most  heartfelt  condolence.  I  recall  the 
pleasant  rides  and  talks  with  yon  both  at  Saratoga  in  the 
years  gone  by,  and  I  can  imagine  how  lonely  you  must  be 
after  a  half-century  of  loving  fellowship.  Not  long,  how- 
ever, will  you  be  sundered.  '  The  miles  to  heaven/  as  holy 
Rutherford  says,  '  are  few  and  short.' 


214         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"  But  we  want  you  to  stay  with  us  as  long  as  you  can.  I 
had  a  talk  about  you  with  Mrs.  William  E.  Dodge  last  week 
at  Lake  Mohonk.  Her  husband  and  you  were  my  ideals 
among  the  veteran  Christians  of  New  York. 

"  May  the  Everlasting  Arms  uphold  you  !  " 

One  of  the  grandchildren  was  at  a  distance,  and  did 
not  hear  of  her  death  till  the  night  of  the  funeral.  A 
letter  from  him  is  inserted,  as  showing  the  tender  com- 
munion and  confidence  that  subsisted  between  the  older 
and  younger  members  of  the  family. 

"  I  have  just  received  the  sad  news  of  dear  Grandma's 
death.  I  cannot  realize  that  I  am  not  to  see  her  face  again. 
I  have  always  loved  her  more  than  I  can  ever  tell,  and  have 
learned  lessons  from  her  lips  which  I  can  never  forget.  And 
now  that  she  is  gone,  I  do  not  know  what  to  say  to  you, 
upon  whom  this  sorrow  has  fallen  so  heavily.  The  burden 
will  be  a  hard  one  to  bear ;  it  is  hard  for  us  ;  it  must  be 
harder  for  you,  who  have  been  the  fifty  years'  companion  of 
her  we  have  lost.  And  yet  with  all  the  sorrow  can  there  not 
be  found  some  joy  in  your  lonely  heart  to-night,  —  joy  over 
fifty  years  of  the  sweetest  and  holiest  communion  of  life  with 
hfe,  — joy  over  the  ending  of  what  must  almost  have  become 
a  weary  pilgrimage  for  Grandma,  with  her  feeble  strength  and 
almost  never-ceasing  pain,  —  and,  most  of  all,  joy  over  the 
knowledge  of  her  entrance  into  that  home  for  which  I  am 
sure  she  has  long  been  yearning  1  Grandma  loved  her  own 
people  dearly,  but  she  loved  her  God  more,  and  I  am  sure  it 
that  is  tlie  case  heaven  is  a  better  place  for  her  than  earth. 
A  life  of  joy  and  peace  without  pain,  without  disappointment, 
without  sorrow,  is  so  much  better  than  a  weak,  worn  life. 

"  I  would  I  could  tell  you  all  I  feel.  Grandfather.  I  know 
how  black  it  all  looks  ahead,  but  I  also  know  how  well  you 
know  where  to  look  for  light.  Grandma  had  more  than  com- 
pleted her  threescore  years  and  ten  ;  the  full  measure  of  life 
had  been  hers,  and  now  that  the  cross  is  laid  down,  is  it  not 


LETTER  FROM  SPURGEON.  215 

better  so  1  The  time  will  not  be  long  before  you  meet  again  ; 
but  a  few  years  at  the  most  separate  you  from  her,  and 
the  meeting  will  be  very  soon. 

"  I  would  have  liked  to  be  with  you  to-day,  and  see  her 
face  once  more,  but  the  news  did  not  come  till  to-night,  and 
so  I  can  only  write.  I  think  of  Grandma  here  just  as  rev- 
erently as  if  I  wei'e  in  the  place  of  mourning. 

"  Dear  Grandfather,  I  love  you,  and  want  so  much  to  help 
you  now.  May  God  bless  and  keep  you  !  may  His  everlast- 
ing arms  be  around  you,  and  may  you  find  in  Him  all  the 
peace  and  love  and  rest  you  need  ! " 

The  Sunday  after  Mrs.  Carter  died,  the  little  "  church 
in  the  house "  assembled  again  in  Centreport,  sorely 
missing  the  dear  one  who  had  so  greatly  enjoyed  the 
services  of  the  Sunday  before.  Again  the  volume  of 
Spurgeon's  sermons  was  used,  and  it  was  found  that  the 
next  discourse  in  order  was  entitled,  "  Why  they  leave 
us,"  with  the  text,  "  Father,  I  will  that  they  also  whom 
Thou  hast  given  me  be  with  me  where  I  am,  that  they 
may  behold  my  glory  which  Thou  hast  given  me."  It 
was  preached  after  the  deaths  of  Hugh  Stowell  Brown 
and  Charles  Stanford.  The  sermon  was  to  Mr.  Carter 
exceedingly  helpful  and  comforting,  and  he  wrote  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  telling  him  about  both  services, — how  he  had 
given  to  the  wife  the  last  pulpit  message  that  she  had 
heard  on  earth  on  that  beautiful  earthly  Sabbath,  which 
seemed  a  type  of  the  heavenly  Sabbath  she  was  so  soon 
to  enter,  and  that  he  had  comforted  the  husband  as  he 
sat  sore  amazed  and  disquieted,  mourning  the  departure 
of  his  beloved  one.     He  received  the  following  reply. 

"  Dear  Friend,  —  I  pray  the  Lord  to  sustain  you  under 
your  grievous  loss.  It  is  well  for  us  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
himself  undertakes  the  part  of  Comforter,  for  He  is  able  to 
carry  it  out  to  the  full. 


216         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

"You  are  a  happy  man  to  have  had  so  good  a  wife  for  so  long 
a  time.  In  her  departure  there  is  great  mercy  also,  for  she 
passed  away  so  sweetly.  Nothing  remains  to  be  desired,  for 
she  has  gone  home  beyond  all  question,  and  though  she  has 
left  you,  she  has  left  you  almost  at  the  gates.  Peace  be  to 
you!  .  .  . 

•'  Your  kind  letter  cheered  me  greatly.  I  have  been  sore 
sick,  but  am  slowly  recovering.  I  rejoice  gi'eatly  to  have 
given  comfort  to  your  dear  wife,  and  all  of  you." 

In  less  than  a  month  after  Mrs.  Carter's  death,  her 
dear  old  friend,  Mrs.  Downs,  mother  of  Mrs.  Samuel 
T.  Carter,  died  in  the  same  house  after  a  lingering  ill- 
ness. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Carter  had  greatly  loved  and  es- 
teemed her  for  her  sweet  Christian  character.  She  died 
upon  a  Sunday,  and  in  the  afternoon  Mr.  Carter  with 
his  three  children  and  their  children,  and  Mrs.  Downs's 
own  family,  assembled  in  the  sitting-room  and  had  a 
very  touching  service  commemorative  of  the  three 
dear  ones  who  had  so  recently  gone  home  from  their 
midst,  Mrs.  Carter,  Mrs.  Downs,  and  Mr.  Cochran. 
Each  one  gave  some  tender  memory  of  the  loved  ones 
gone, —  sorrowing,  yet  rejoicing  at  every  remembrance 
of  them. 

"  For  all  Thy  saints  who  from  their  labors  rest, 
Who  Thee  by  faith  before  the  world  confessed, 
Thy  name,  0  Jesus,  be  forever  blessed." 

Even  the  very  little  ones  brought  their  tribute  of 
praise  and  love  to  those  whom  they  held  so  dear,  and 
every  heart  was  quickened  with  the  desire  to  live  as 
they  had  lived, 

"  And  win  with  them  the  victor's  crown  of  gold." 

"  0  blest  communion,  fellowship  divine  ! 
We  feebly  struggle,  they  in  glory  shine, 
Yet  all  are  one  in  Thee,  for  all  are  Thine." 


HIS  INTEREST   IN   HIS  GRANDCHILDREN.        217 

It  was  very  touching  to  hear  the  little  ones  repeat 
what  l*apa  or  Grandmamma  had  said  while  yet  present 
with  them,  and  yet  more  sweet  and  tender  were  the 
words  of  the  aged  saint  who  could  testify  of  the  good- 
ness and  mercy  which  had  followed  him  all  the  days  of 
his  life,  and  which  had  shown  itself  so  plainly  in  giv- 
ing him  a  wife  in  whom  the  heart  of  her  husband  could 
safely  trust,  who  had  done  him  "  good,  and  not  evil,  all 
the  days  of  her  life."  It  seemed  as  if  he  was  so  rich  in 
memories  that  there  was  room  for  little  but  gratitude. 

On  this  occasion  he  quoted  Cowper's  Lines  on  the  Re- 
ceipt of  his  Mother's  Picture,  a  poem  which  had  always 
been  a  great  favorite  with  him,  and  expressed  a  desire 
that  all  his  children  and  grandchildren  should  learn  it. 

It  was  now  decided  that  Mrs.  Cochran,  with  her  fa- 
therless little  ones,  should  come  into  his  home,  to  bear 
him  company  and  guide  his  household.  Some  might 
have  questioned  the  wisdom  of  bringing  seven  children 
under  sixteen  years  of  age  into  the  home  of  a  man  nearly 
eighty,  and  one  of  his  old  friends  wrote  to  him  remon- 
strating, saying  that  Mr.  Carter  might  be  able  to  stand 
such  an  arrangement,  but  he  was  sure  he  never  could. 
But  the  union  proved  a  blessing  to  both  old  and  young. 
Mr.  Carter  frequently  spoke  of  it  as  one  of  the  great 
blessings  which  God  had  vouchsafed  to  him  in  his 
bereavement.  He  often  referred  to  his  friend's  warning, 
adding,  "  But  he  was  wrong ;  I  have  never  had  the 
slightest  reason  to  regret  it."  The  children  afforded 
him  pleasurable  occupation.  Every  evening  he  heard 
the  Latin  and  Greek  lessons  for  the  next  day ;  he  ex- 
amined all  the  school  reports,  and  rejoiced  in  every 
sign  of  progress.  Little  two  year  old  Annie  was  his 
special  friend.  She  seemed  to  comfort  him  more  than 
anything  else,  perhaps  because  of  her  unconsciousness 


218  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

of  grief.  He  had  to  be  merry  with  the  merry,  loving, 
happy  little  baby.  They  would  walk  up  and  down  the 
long  parlor  hand  in  hand,  while  the  old  man  forgot  his 
sorrows  as  he  talked  in  simple  language  to  the  little 
child.  But  this  desire  of  his  eyes  was  taken  from  him 
at  a  stroke.  In  two  days  scarlet-fever  laid  her  low, 
and  she  was  buried  by  the  side  of  her  father  in  the  old 
graveyard  in  Mendham.  Of  such  bright,  gentle,  loving, 
docile,  and  happy  spirits  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Mr. 
Carter  deeply  mourned  his  little  granddaughter,  and  his 
affections  centred  again  upon  the  next  oldest  child, 
beautiful  little  golden-haired  Kitty.  She  would  nestle 
up  to  him  saying,  "  I  'm  your  baby  now.  Grandpa,"  and 
he  poured  out  a  wealth  of  love  upon  her.  He  would 
make  her  stand  beside  him  at  evening  prayers  and  read 
the  Bible  verses  alternately  with  him  and  her  little 
brother,  and  he  almost  always  remarked  at  the  close, 
"  I  never  heard  a  child  read  as  Kitty  does." 

Five  weeks  from  the  Sunday  when  little  Annie  died, 
Kitty  went  with  her  mother  to  Dr.  Hall's  church,  and 
heard  him  preach  on  the  whole  of  the  twenty-third 
Psalm.  As  soon  as  the  sermon  began,  she  whispered, 
"Where's  the  golden  text?"  and  seemed  very  much 
astonished  when  she  found  it  was  a  whole  Psalm.  In 
coming  out  of  church,  as  soon  as  her  little  feet  touched 
the  pavement, —  they  were  never  again  to  stand  in  any 
earthly  Zion, —  she  said,  "Mamma,  I  know  the  golden 
text,"  and  she  repeated  the  Psalm  through.  When  her 
grandfather  came  in  from  his  church  service  a  little 
later,  she  ran  up  to  him  before  he  had  a  chance  to  take 
off  his  overcoat,  and  said,  "  Grandpa,  do  you  want  to 
know  the  golden  text  ? "  and  he  stood  still,  hat  and  cane 
in  hand,  to  hear  her  repeat  it,  the  little  one  evidently 
enjoying  the  fact  that  she  was  taking  him  in  by  giving 


LOVE   FOR   HIS  GRANDCHILDREN.  219 

him  a  Psalm  when  he  expected  a  verse.  It  was  a  pic- 
ture never  to  be  forgotten  by  the  loving  eyes  that 
witnessed  it,  the  old  man  and  the  graceful  little  golden- 
haired  child  as  they  enjoyed  together  the  Psalm,  verses 
of  which  are  now  engraven  upon  their  burial  stones. 
That  week  she  was  taken  with  that  most  terrible  of 
diseases,  membranous  croup.  The  bright  little  "  Sun- 
beam," the  ray  from  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  was  not 
to  be  left  longer  to  irradiate  her  earthly  home,  but  was 
taken  to  the  city  where  she  shall  shine  forever. 

Thus  again,  and  for  the  last  time,  Mr.  Carter  was 
obliged  to  taste  of  the  bitter  cup  of  sorrow.  Thus  four 
very  dear  to  him  were  carried  from  under  his  roof  in 
thirteen  months.  He  was  ready  to  say  with  holy  men 
of  old,  "  I  was  dumb,  I  opened  not  my  mouth,  because 
Thou  didst  it."  "  The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath 
taken  away  ;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord."  He 
neither  "  despised  the  chastening  of  the  Lord"  by  feeling 
lightly  the  dispensations  of  his  hand,  nor  "  fainted  when 
he  was  rebuked  of  him  "  by  yielding  to  undue  gloom 
and  despondency.  His  eyes  were  ever  directed  above 
to  the  home  where  his  beloved  are,  and  he  knew  well 
that  the  Lord  of  the  many  mansions  would  erelong  re- 
ceive him  unto  himself. 

The  next  summer  he  spent  at  Atlantic  Highlands. 
He  had  for  the  last  four  summers  gone  to  some  seaside 
place,  and  he  greatly  enjoyed  the  water.  He  never 
tired  of  rowing  and  sailing,  and  never  refused  an  in- 
vitation to  do  either.  He  grew  as  bronzed  as  an  old  sea 
captain,  and  was  sometimes  called  the  Ancient  Mariner. 
He  greatly  enjoyed  the  services  in  the  Methodist  taber- 
nacle there,  and  took  part  in  the  Love  Feasts  and  other 
services,  as  if  he  had  always  been  accustomed  to  them. 
His  voice  was  frequently  heard  in  the  social  meetings. 


220  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

In  the  fall  of  this  year,  1888,  he  made  his  last  visit 
to  his  familiar  haunts  in  Mendham,  a  place  greatly 
endeared  to  him.  On  his  last  Sunday  there,  he  went, 
as  was  his  frequent  custom,  to  the  Methodist  Sunday 
school,  where  he  always  received  a  hearty  welcome.  In 
addressing  them,  he  said  that  he  did  not  suppose  he 
should  ever  stand  before  them  again.  As  he  concluded, 
the  school  started  the  hymn,  "  We  shall  meet  beyond 
the  river." 

That  fall  and  winter  he  had  a  good  deal  of  sickness, 
premonitory  of  his  final  illness,  but  in  the  intervals  re- 
sumed his  wonted  activity.  At  the  time  of  the  Centen- 
nial Celebration,  in  1889,  Mr.  Carter's  children  had 
rather  taken  it  for  granted  that,  with  his  failing  health 
and  debility,  he  would  not  care  to  see  the  procession, 
although  his  store  would  be  furnished  with  scaffolding 
for  the  benefit  of  those  who  wanted  to  witness  it ;  but 
they  had  greatly  underestimated  their  father's  vitality 
and  public  spirit  Some  one  had  made  a  remark,  tak- 
ing for  granted  that  he  would  not  go,  and  he  sat  silent 
for  a  few  moments,  and  then  said,  "  I  think  I  should 
like  to  go  down  to  the  procession.  There  will  be  a  good 
many  at  the  store  who  would  like  to  see  me."  And 
after  a  moment's  pause  he  added,  "  and  a  good  many 
whom  I  should  like  to  see."  Of  course  all  were  de- 
lighted to  have  him  there,  and  he  entered  into  all  the 
doings  of  both  days  with  the  interest  of  a  boy.  His 
was  a  spirit  that  never  grew  old. 

When  the  General  Assembly  met  in  New  York,  in 
1889,  Mr.  Carter  was  confined  to  his  room  while  re- 
covering from  a  severe  illness.  He  was  well  enough, 
however,  to  receive  a  large  number  of  his  old  friends, 
and  to  take  a  lively  interest  in  reports  of  the  proceed- 
ings.    He  especially  enjoyed  at  this  time  a  visit  from 


LAST  DAYS  OF   ACTIVITY.  221 

his  nephew,  Eev.  Dr.  Thomas  Carter  Kirkwood  of  Colo- 
rado. This  dear  friend,  when  asked,  a  year  later,  for 
suggestions  as  to  his  uncle's  Memorial,  answered,  "  Lay 
stress  upon  the  mention  of  his  great  kindness  to  theo- 
logical students." 

Early  in  June,  he  went  with  his  son  Eobert  and  his 
granddaughter  to  visit  his  oldest  son  at  Boonton,  New 
Jersey,  while  his  daughter  with  her  children  went 
to  their  old  home  in  Mendham.  After  his  arrival  in 
Boonton,  he  penned  to  his  daughter  what  was  perhaps 
his  last  autograph  letter,  in  which  he  says :  "  All  are 
very  kind.  I  need  no  help  which  is  not  readily  given. 
But  still  I  miss  your  loving  care.  You  have  been  a 
great  comfort  to  me  since  your  dear  mother  left  me.  I 
do  not  know  how  I  could  have  lived  had  I  not  had  your 
constant  care.  But,  after  all,  I  must  look  higher.  How 
low  my  aims  are  !  I  hear  the  call.  Look  unto  me,  but 
it  often  is  unheeded.  Give  my  love  to  the  dear  ones 
around  you.  How  many  you  have  to  cheer  you  in 
Mendham  !  Meetings  are  as  frequent  as  ever,  and  all 
take  part." 

On  the  evening  of  Sunday,  June  23d,  a  praise  service 
was  held  in  the  church.  The  writers  whose  hymns 
were  sung  that  evening  were  Robert  Murray  McCheyne 
and  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Horatius  Bonar.  The  Bonars  were  old 
friends  of  Mr.  Carter,  who,  by  request  of  his  son,  gave 
some  very  interesting  reminiscences  concerning  them. 
He  closed  his  address  with  the  words,  "The  night 
cometh.  Shall  we  all  meet  together  in  the  morning  ? " 
As  the  old  man  spoke,  his  aged  friend,  Bonar,  the  poet 
preacher,  was  stepping  down  to  the  banks  of  Jordan, 
and  only  one  more  Sabbath  was  the  speaker  himself 
permitted  to  spend  in  the  earthly  sanctuary.  On  that 
Sabbath,  — June  30th,  —  Mr.  Carter  visited  the  Sunday 


222         LITE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

school,  heard  his  son  preach  twice,  and  spoke  at  an 
open-air  prayer  meeting  in  the  woods.  As  he  rose  to 
speak,  one  who  noticed  how  feeble  he  was  moved  his 
own  chair  so  that  he  might  catch  him  if  he  fell. 

He  had  expected  to  go  with  some  of  his  children  and 
grandchildren  to  Sharon  Springs  on  July  8th,  and  every 
arrangement  was  made  for  the  journey ;  but  on  Saturday, 
July  6th,  he  was  taken  with  a  return  of  the  illness  which 
he  had  had  several  times  the  winter  before.  A  mes- 
sage was  sent  to  his  daughter  late  on  Saturday  night, 
and  at  an  early  hour  on  Sunday  she  was  at  his  side. 
One  of  his  grandchildren,  looking  from  the  window, 
said  to  him,  "Grandpa,  here  is  aunt  getting  out  of  a 
carriage  at  the  door."  "Ah!  I  knew  she  would  come," 
he  said,  in  tones  of  joy  and  affection,  and  his  welcome 
was  with  all  his  wonted  tenderness,  —  more  was  hardly 
possible. 

Then  began  a  struggle,  which  lasted  nearly  six  months, 
in  which  skilled  physicians  and  loving  watchers  strove 
to  ward  off  the  assaults  of  disease  and  death.  It  was 
an  unequal  struggle,  and  would  have  been  still  more  so, 
at  his  advanced  age,  but  for  his  splendid  powers  of  en- 
durance. His  physician  never  examined  him  without 
exclaiming  over  the  breadth  and  depth  of  his  chest, 
and  saying,  "  Mr.  Carter,  that  is  what  is  pulling  you 
through." 

Old  and  attached  family  servants  came  to  assist  in 
caring  for  him.  Such  had  always  been  at  his  command, 
for  in  all  his  fifty-six  years  of  housekeeping  a  servant  had 
seldom  left  his  house,  where  many  had  learned  the  way 
of  salvation,  except  to  enter  a  home  of  her  own.  Though 
often  in  great  suffering,  and  always  in  much  weak- 
ness, not  a  murmur  ever  passed  his  lips.  On  the  con- 
trary, words  of  thanksgiving  and  praise  were  often  there. 


DAYS  OF   ILLNESS.  223 

For  weeks  he  was  confined  to  his  bed,  or  lifted  from  it 
with  great  care  to  a  lounge.  Then  he  rallied  sufficiently 
to  sit  up  a  little  in  an  invalid  chair,  and  finally  was  able 
to  walk,  with  two  supporting  him,  through  the  hall  and 
adjoining  rooms.  This  was  a  great  pleasure  to  him,  and 
he  evidently  was  very  proud  to  show  ofif  his  powers  of 
locomotion  to  his  physician.  He  always  wanted  family 
prayers  held  in  his  room.  On  a  very  few  occasions, 
when  he  seemed  too  ill,  they  were  held  in  the  sitting- 
room,  but  his  disappointment  was  so  great  that  it  was 
thought  best  to  have  them  as  quietly  as  possible  at  his 
side.  The  Bible  was  read  to  him  a  great  deal,  and 
every  morning  he  wanted  to  hear  the  daily  portion  from 
Dr.  J.  E.  Miller's  beautiful  "  Come  ye  apart."  This  was 
the  third  year  of  his  reading  it  through,  and  he  enjoyed 
it  as  much  as  ever.  All  through  his  illness  he  frequently 
repeated  Cowper's  hymn,  — 

"  Hark,  my  soul,  it  is  the  Lord, 
'T  is  thy  Saviour,  hear  his  word. 
Jesus  speaks  and  speaks  to  thee, 
Say,  poor  sinner,  lov'st  thou  rae  ?  " 

He  never  tired  of  the  beautiful  words,  and  wanted  all 
his  grandchildren  to  learn  them. 

His  brother,  Mr.  Peter  Carter,  visited  him  at  least 
once  a  week  while  he  was  at  Boonton.  Three  of  his 
children  were  with  him  all  the  time,  and  the  fourth, 
at  Huntington,  Long  Island,  came  as  often  as  possible. 
Two  of  his  clerks  who  had  been  with  him,  one  for 
thirty-seven,  the  other  for  thirty-three  years,  also 
came  out  to  see  him.  The  firm  of  the  Carters  had  been 
remarkable  for  the  long  continuance  of  employees  in 
its  service.  One,  who  died  in  1885,  had  been  with 
them  for  forty  years.  Like  all  their  employees,  he 
was  a  man  of  sterling  integrity.     The  same  year  their 


224         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

porter  died,  having  been  thirty-three  years  with  them. 
At  the  time  of  these  deaths,  there  was  no  one  in  the 
establishment  who  had  not  been  there  twenty-five 
years. 

One  day,  in  the  early  part  of  his  illness,  he  said  to 
his  brother  Peter,  who  was  a  partner  in  the  business : 
"  1  have  been  for  many  years  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Foreign  Missions,  and  it  has  been  a  great  blessing  to 
me.  I  want  you  to  send  a  thousand  dollars  to  the 
Board  from  me.  And  the  work  of  Christ  in  our  own 
country  is  of  equal  importance,  so  I  want  to  send  a 
thousand  dollars  at  the  same  time  to  Home  Missions." 
He  did  not  say  it,  but  it  was  evident  that  he  felt  that 
these  were  dying  gifts.  He  had  always  felt  very  strongly 
the  duty  of  being  his  own  executor,  making  all  his  gifts 
with  the  living  hand. 

On  the  first  day  of  September  there  was  a  communion 
service  in  the  church.  An  attached  domestic  who  had 
lived  with  him  thirteen  years  first  made  the  suggestion 
that  the  Lord's  supper  should  be  given  to  him.  After 
a  little  consultation,  he  was  asked  if  he  would  like  such 
a  service,  and  he  eagerly  assented.  After  church  the 
elders  came  over  to  the  parsonage,  and,  with  those  of 
his  children,  grandchildren,  and  servants  who  were  in 
Boon  ton,  assembled  in  the  sick-room.  He  sat  pillowed 
up  in  bed,  looking  very  venerable  and  saintly,  like  the 
patriarch  Jacob  surrounded  by  his  children.  His  eldest 
son  conducted  the  service,  which  was  a  very  tender 
one.  He  spoke  of  its  being  just  sixty-seven  years  that 
month  since  his  father  first  partook  of  the  communion, 
and  of  all  who  then  were  with  him  having  passed  over 
the  river.  "  Eock  of  Ages,"  and  "  Jesus,  Lover  of  my 
Soul,"  were  sung.  Mr.  Carter  said  afterwards,  that  it 
was  most  delightful  to  have  so  many  of  his  children 


DAYS  OF  ILLNESS.  225 

with  him,  adding,  "  God  bless  them  all."  It  was  some- 
thing to  remember  in  eternity.  The  wonderful  mingling 
of  joy  and  sorrow  on  such  an  occasion  is  something 
that  the  world  cannot  comprehend.  He  was  to  drink 
no  more  of  the  fruit  of  the  vine  until  for  him  the  king- 
dom of  God  should  come. 

For  a  while  after  this  he  seemed  to  be  a  little 
stronger.  He  was  not  in  the  least  nervous,  and  the 
going  and  comiog  of  a  large  family  about  him  seemed 
very  pleasant  to  him.  Grandpa's  room  was  the  centre 
of  everything  to  the  large  household.  By  and  by  he 
was  able  to  be  carried  down  to  the  sitting-room  daily, 
and  even  to  take  his  place  at  the  table,  to  which  he 
was  wheeled  in  an  invalid  chair.  Several  times  he  was 
lifted  into  a  carriage  and  took  a  short  drive.  The  first 
time  he  went,  he  remarked,  "  I  never  expected  to  drive 
out  again."  One  day  he  happened  in  conversation  to 
speak  of  Cowper's  "Negro's  Complaint,"  and  said, 
"  That  is  a  very  fine  poem.  I  wish  my  grandcliildren 
would  learn  it.  I  will  give  a  dollar  to  every  one  of 
them  who  will  repeat  it  to  me."  He  seemed  greatly 
gratified  as  one  after  another  of  the  children  visiting  or 
living  in  the  house  came  to  him  to  recite  the  verses, 
until  he  had  given  his  dollars  to  thirteen  of  them. 

On  October  15th  he  was  taken  back  to  the  city.  He 
was  lifted  into  an  easy  carriage  at  his  son's  door,  lifted 
again,  and  laid  on  the  sofa  of  the  drawing-room  car, 
where  he  said  he  was  just  as  comfortable  as  in  his  bed 
at  home.  His  skilful  and  kind  physician  accompanied 
and  saw  him  safely  in  his  bed  in  his  own  house,  and 
then  gave  his  case  over  into  the  hands  of  his  New 
York  doctor,  who  was  equally  skilful  and  kindly.  As 
he  was  carried  into  the  house,  he  exclaimed,  "  I  never 
expected  to  see  my  home  again."     He  was  frequently 

15 


226         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

heard  to  thank  God  that  he  had  allowed  him  to  spend 
that  last  summer  in  the  household  of  his  son,  and  spoke 
with  great  affection  of  the  constant  sohcitude  of  his 
children  for  him. 

Several  times  after  reaching  the  city,  he  was  able  to 
be  carried  down  stairs,  and  go  for  a  drive  in  the  Cen- 
tral Park,  but  at  last  his  physicians  decided  that  this 
was  too  great  a  risk.  It  was  a  great  disappointment 
to  him  to  give  up  his  drives,  but  he  bore  it  cheerfully, 
as  he  did  all  privations  and  sufferings.  The  doctor  laid 
his  hand  on  his  shoulder  one  day,  and  said,  "  Mr.  Car- 
ter, you  are  the  most  patient  man  I  ever  saw  in  my 
life.  A  team  of  horses  could  not  draw  a  complaint 
from  you." 

Another  day  a  friend  said  to  him,  "  It  must  be  a 
great  pleasure  to  you  to  look  back  on  your  well-spent 
life,  and  think  of  all  the  good  you  have  done."  "  Oh 
no,  no  !  I  have  been  very,  very  unworthy.  I  have  no 
reliance  but  in  the  atoning  sacrifice  of  my  Saviour." 

He  was  able  to  see  his  friends,  and  his  social  nature 
took  great  pleasure  in  their  visits.  His  brother  Peter 
came  to  him  every  day,  and  all  through  his  illness  he 
kept  the  run  of  the  business  and  knew  all  that  was 
going  on  at  the  store.  He  kept  watch  of  political  mat- 
ters, and  in  the  question  of  the  revision  of  the  Con- 
fession of  Faith  took  a  keen  interest,  having  all  the 
newspaper  reports  read  to  him.  Once  when  there  was 
something  said  in  debate  that  seemed  to  him  personal 
and  unchristian,  he  said,  "  We  have  had  enough  of  that 
Read  something  else."  In  this  question  of  revision 
his  feeling  was  that  there  were  some  expressions  that 
might  better  be  changed,  but  he  did  not  favor  wholesale 
alterations.  In  all  such  matters  his  motto  was,  "  In 
essentials  unity,  in  non-essentials  liberty,  in  all  things 


HIS  LAST  BIRTHDAY.  227 

charity."  His  mind  was  so  clear  and  his  interest  in  all 
about  him  so  keen,  his  conversational  powers  so  unim- 
paired, that  the  visits  of  his  friends  were  a  great  pleas- 
ure to  him  and  to  them.  Dr.  John  Hall  was  a  frequent 
visitor,  and  when  one  of  the  family  thanked  him  for 
his  kind  attention,  he  replied,  "  No  need  of  thanks,  my 
visits  are  not  at  all  unselfish.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  have 
intercourse  with  such  a  man  as  your  father."  He 
greatly  enjoyed  a  call  from  Dr.  McCosh,  and  the  two 
talked  over  the  question  of  revision  at  great  length, 
and  with  entire  unanimity.  It  seemed  as  if  all  his  old 
friends  rallied  about  him  with  words  of  affection  and 
cheer. 

His  eighty-second  birthday  was  on  November  2,  and 
was  remembered  by  many  thoughtful  friends  with  gifts 
and  visits  and  letters.  His  grandchildren  at  a  dis- 
tance, even  very  little  ones,  wrote  their  congratulations. 
The  following  letter  from  Eev.  Dr.  J.  E.  Miller,  whose 
"  Come  ye  apart "  was  his  daily  companion,  was  re- 
ceived at  this  time  :  — 

"  I  have  just  seen  a  uotice  in  the  New  York  Evangelist, 
that  to-morrow  will  be  your  birthday.  I  am  constrained  to 
write  a  word  of  sincere  congratulation.  There  are  many 
things  upon  which  you  are  to  be  congratulated.  One  is, 
that  through  the  grace  of  Christ  in  you,  your  life  has  been 
such  a  blessing  to  the  world,  so  full  of  usefulness,  such  an 
educating,  uplifting  influence.  You  will  never  know  the 
full  value  of  what  you  have  done  until  in  eternity  you  see  all 
the  results  and  inspirations  when  the  harvest  is  gathered. 

"  Another  thing  on  which  your  friends  cannot  but  con- 
gratulate you  and  felicitate  themselves  is,  that  your  useful 
life  has  been  so  long  spared,  that  year  has  been  added  to 
year  until  you  have  now  passed  your  fourscore.  It  has  been 
a  great  joy  and  blessing  to  all  who  know  you  that  the  tree 


228         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

has  been  left  standing  so  long,  that  hungry  ones  might  sit 
in  its  refreshing  shade  and  eat  of  its  ripened  fruits. 

"Another  thing  on  which  you  should  be  congratulated  is, 
that  you  have  outlived  neither  your  usefulness  nor  your 
welcome  in  this  world.  Some  old  people  do  both.  But  you 
are  enjoying  in  the  mellow  eventide  of  your  life  the  love  of 
loyal  friends,  and  the  esteem  and  regard  of  the  thousands  to 
whom  you  have  been  a  blessing,  and  are  still  bringing  forth 
fruit  in  old  age. 

"  One  other  cause  for  congratulation  is  that  you  have  an 
immortality  before  you,  bright  with  rich  possibilities  of 
growth,  in  which  you  are  going  to  continue  to  work  for 
Christ.  This  is  the  best  of  all.  The  '  endless  life  '  beyond 
the  shadows  of  mortality  is  a  great  deal  more  real  than  the 
broken  years  we  live  in  this  world.  There  the  oldest  are  the 
youngest,  and  all  life  is  toward  youth. 

"  May  God  continue  you  for  many  other  years  of  use- 
fulness here,  and  then  introduce  you  to  an  eternity  of 
glorious  life." 

A  few  days  later  came  the  following  letter  from  Dr. 
Cuyler:  — 

"I  often,  often  think  of  you,  and  wish  T  was  so  near  that 
I  could  come  in  and  enjoy  a  grasp  of  your  honest  hand,  and 
a  look  into  the  face  that  has  shone  for  half  a  century  in  the 
light  of  God's  countenance.  How  I  love  you,  and  rejoice 
to  have  spent  so  many  hours  with  you  in  this  world !  But 
many  more,  I  trust,  up  yonder. 

"  I  send  to  you  one  of  my  late  articles,  written  for  those 
shut  up  in  sick-rooms,  entitled  '  Prisoners  of  Jesus  Christ.* 
Perhaps  it  may  be  to  you  also  a  love  message,  I  hope  that 
I  can  get  over  soon  to  see  you,  but  my  work  is  heavy,  con- 
stant, pressing,  and  I  am  not  quite  so  hearty  as  usual. 

"  Thanks,  —  thanks  for  the  unspeakable  gift  of  Christ 
Jesus  to  us  both,  and  to  our  loved  ones. 

"  Ever  yours,  till  the  day  break  in  glory." 


ILLNESS.  229 

A  few  days  later,  Dr.  Cuyler  called,  and  had  a  most 
delightful  talk  with  his  aged  friend,  whom  he  described 
as  dwelling  in  the  land  of  Beulah. 

On  his  birthday  and  all  through  his  sickness,  he 
greatly  enjoyed  the  beautiful  flowers  that  were  sent 
him,  and  his  grandchildren  loved  to  bring  them  to 
him  and  witness  the  look  of  pleasure  that  spread 
over  his  face  as  he  received  them.  He  had  always 
been  very  fond  of  flowers,  and  as  he  walked  the  street 
in  his  days  of  health,  he  would  stop  before  the  florists' 
windows  and  rejoice  that  there  were  so  many  more 
of  them  than  there  used  to  be  to  delight  the  passer 
by.  Often  he  would  quote  from  Milton's  Lycidas  the 
description  of  the  flowers  brought 

"  To  strew  the  laureate  hearse  where  Lycid  lies," 

and  remark  that  "  the  glowing  violet "  had  a  line  all  to 
itself.  When  some  one  reminded  him  of  the  enormous 
sums  spent  on  floral  decorations,  so  perishable  in  their 
nature,  he  said,  "It  is  certainly  a  very  different  ex- 
travagance from  that  which  squanders  money  on  cigars 
and  whiskey." 

His  love  of  conversation  continued  strong  to  the  last. 
He  indulged  in  lively  reminiscences  of  his  past  days. 
On  the  last  Sunday,  December  15,  in  which  he  was  able 
to  converse,  one  of  his  grandsons  who  sat  beside  him 
drew  him  on  to  speak  of  many  of  the  prominent  men 
and  women  whom  he  had  known,  and  at  last  said, 
"  Grandfather,  whom  do  you  consider  the  most  remark- 
able person  you  ever  knew  ? "  He  turned  to  him  with 
a  bright  look,  and  said  earnestly,  "  My  wife."  The  true 
and  tender  heart  beat  faithfully  for  her  alone,  until  death 
stilled  it. 

As  Christmas  approached,  he  remembered  his  accus- 


230  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

tomed  gifts.  For  several  years  he  had  not  been  able 
to  do  any  Christmas  shopping,  but  had  sent  instead  a 
check  to  each  of  his  sisters,  and  also  one  to  each  of  his 
children  to  be  divided  among  the  grandchildren. 

One  of  the  last  things  he  spoke  of  consciously  was  to 
tell  his  son  Eobert  to  be  sure  not  to  forget  the  grand- 
children's money,  and  his  brother  Peter  to  be  sure  to 
send  the  sisters  their  checks,  and  not  to  neglect  the  con- 
tribution sent  every  December  from  the  firm  to  Foreign 
Missions.  His  ruling  passion  of  benevolence  was  strong 
in  death. 

His  last  conscious  moments  were  on  Christmas  day. 
The  grandchildren  livmg  in  the  house  brought  their 
oflerings  to  him,  and  he  spoke  admiringly  of  a  Japanese 
vase  filled  with  beautiful  roses ;  and  when  two  of  the 
younger  ones  gave  him  an  illustrated  copy  of  "  Rab  and 
his  Friends,"  he  spoke  of  the  author,  and  said,  "  I  knew 
him  well  years  ago."  These  were  his  last  words.  He 
sank  into  a  sleep,  and  never  awoke  till  he  was  in  the 
presence  of  the  King  in  his  beauty.  He  entered  into 
rest  in  the  early  morning  of  Saturday,  December  28, 
1889.  His  life  of  love  and  service  on  earth  is  ended, 
but  in  the  heavenly  home  Christ's  "  servants  shall  serve 
Him,  and  they  shall  see  His  face,  and  His  name  shall 
be  in  their  foreheads." 


FUNERAL    SERVICES. 


/^"N"  December  31,  Eobert  Carter  was  laid  beside  his 
^^  beloved  wife  in  Greenwood.  The  funeral  services 
were  held  in  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  Church.  The 
attendance  was  very  large,  and  many  remarked  on  the 
great  number  of  noble-looking  old  men  who  were  present, 
—  men  who  had  co-operated  with  him  in  many  a  good 
word  and  work.  Several  of  the  benevolent  Boards  of 
which  he  was  a  member  attended  in  a  body.  His  pastor 
wrote  of  it :  "I  never  remember  such  a  funeral,  or  such 
united  whole-hearted  testimony  to  the  purity  of  the  life 
that  was  being  remembered.  Dr.  Shedd  said  afterwards, 
'  Mr.  Robert  Carter  was  without  exception  the  best  man 
I  ever  knew.'  Testimony  like  that  from  such  a  source 
is  worth  more  than  any  number  of  funeral  sermons." 

PRAYER. 
Rev.   G.   W.   Alexander,  D.  D. 

Almighty  God,  Fraraer  of  our  bodies.  Father  of  our 
spirits,  we  come  to  Thee  with  voice  of  thanksgiving, 
even  though  we  come  with  voice  of  tears.  "VYe  praise 
Thee,  we  bless  Thee,  we  magnify  and  adore  Thy  won- 
derful grace  unto  the  children  of  men.  We  thank 
Thee  for  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  Thy  love,  and  for  the 
glorious  Gospel   that   is  preached  in   his   name.     We 


232  LIFE   OF   ROBERT   CARTER. 

thank  Thee  for  the  power  of  Thy  Spirit,  whereby  Thou 
dost  renew  sinful  men  and  make  them  to  be  children 
of  the  Most  High  God.  We  thank  Thee  for  Thy 
watchful  care  over  Thine  own,  we  thank  Thee  for  the 
good  and  holy  examples  of  those  who  have  finished 
their  course  in  patience  keeping  the  faith,  we  thank 
Thee  for  the  hopes  of  the  Gospel,  and  while  we  ask 
Thee  for  comfort  for  those  who  mourn  and  strength  for 
those  who  struggle  here,  we  call  upon  our  hearts  and 
all  within  us  to  praise  and  bless  and  magnify  Thy 
holy  name,  while  we  look  forward  to  the  fulfilment  of 
our  blessed  hope  in  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Mas- 
ter Jesus  Christ. 

And  now  we  ask  Thee  to  be  with  us  during  this  ten- 
der and  solemn  service,  that  Thy  name  may  be  glori- 
fied and  our  souls  blessed  through  Jesus  our  Lord. 

READING  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

HYMN. 

"  Servant  of  God,  well  done  ! 
Rest  from  thy  loved  employ." 

ADDRESS. 
Eev.   S.   M.   Hamilton,   D.D. 

We  are  not  here  to-day  to  mourn  sadly.  We  are 
here  to  acknowledge  the  goodness  of  God  in  this  well 
rounded  life  just  closed  on  earth  with  the  blessings  of 
thousands  upon  it.  We  are  here  to  thank  God  for  this 
friend  whom  He  has  taken  from  our  earthly  fellowship, 
and  to  rejoice  in  the  hope  of  immortality. 

All  of  you  knew  Eobert  Carter,  and  to  know  him 
was  to  honor  him  and  love  him.  Affection  in  its  fitful 
way  will  recall  this  quality  and  that,  will  solace  itself 


FUNERAL   SERVICES.  233 

with  this  characteristic  and  that,  perhaps  in  some  way 
not  intrinsically  important,  but  for  my  part  I  do  not 
care  to  analyze  him  to-day.  Personality  is  more  than 
quality,  and  to  my  mind  and  heart  it  is  the  man  who 
presents  himself,  —  the  friend,  the  father,  the  brother, 
the  fellow  helper,  the  servant  of  God  vvlio  lived  and 
worked  among  us. 

The  secret  of  his  beautiful  and  useful  life  is  easily 
told.  He  loved  Jesus  Christ  with  all  his  heart,  and 
like  his  Saviour,  and  for  his  Saviour's  sake,  he  went 
about  doing  good.  And  that  was  the  whole  of  it.  Tn 
his  presence,  no  one  could  doubt  the  truth  and  power 
of  the  Gospel.  He  manifested  continually  the  reality 
of  the  great  spiritual  light  that  comes  from  Christ.  All 
his  conduct  was  instinct  with  the  spirit  of  his  Master. 
Wherever  he  went  he  diffused  a  sweet  savor  of  Christ. 
For  more  than  fifty  years  he  was  in  active  business  in 
this  city.  During  that  long  period  he  made  no  enemies, 
but  gathered  about  him  a  multitude  of  friends.  He  was 
more  than  a  bookseller.  He  never  published  books  sim- 
ply to  make  money.  He  never  printed  a  book  for  the 
mere  reason  that  it  was  likely  to  sell.  He  only  printed 
it  after  he  had  satisfied  himself  that  it  was  calculated 
to  do  good.  The  imprint  of  his  firm  was  never  put  on 
any  unwholesome  book.  Thank  God  that  all  business 
men  in  this  city  are  not  intent  on  making  money  by 
all  means  and  any  means.  Numbers  of  them  are 
actuated  by  no  low  motives,  and  convert  their  business 
into  the  highest  religious  service.  And  with  Mr.  Car- 
ter this  was  particularly  the  case.  Who  will  estimate 
what  he  has  done  for  the  highest,  truest  welfare  of  his 
countrymen  by  the  circulation  through  more  than  a  half- 
century  of  thousands  upon  thousands  of  good  and  hon- 
est and  pure  books  ? 


234         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

But  our  departed  friend  was  something  more  than  a 
Christian  business  man.  For  years  and  years  a  large 
proportion  of  his  time  was  devoted  to  religious  and 
benevolent  work  of  various  kinds.  He  enjoyed  such 
work,  for  God  had  bestowed  upon  him  gifts  that  pe- 
culiarly fitted  him  for  it,  —  a  vigorous  mind,  a  sound 
judgment,  a  strong  will,  a  happy  temperament,  sweet 
affection,  and  ready  speech.  And  had  you  asked  him 
how  it  was  that  he  gave  so  much  of  himself,  so  much 
of  his  time  and  labor  to  these  causes,  he  might  have 
been  surprised  at  the  question,  and  would  have  an- 
swered, simply,  "  The  love  of  Christ  constraineth  me." 
For  where  has  the  philanthropy  of  our  day  its  real 
root  and  inspiration  ?  Not  in  atheistic  and  commu- 
nistic theories,  —  no  indeed,  —  but  solely  in  the  Gospel 
of  Jesus  Christ,  and  distinctively  in  the  great  ideas  of 
the  incarnation  and  the  atonement  of  Christ, —  the  prac- 
tical constraint  of  those  wondrous  conceptions  of  God's 
unspeakable  love  in  the  gift  of  His  Son. 

Mr.  Carter  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  New  York 
Sabbath  Committee,  and  an  interested  member  of  it  to 
the  last.  He  gave  much  of  his  time  to  the  work  of  the 
American  Bible  Society,  while  the  cause  of  Foreign 
Missions  lay  very  near  his  heart.  One  of  the  last  acts 
which  he  did  was  to  make  arrangements  for  the  pay- 
ment of  his  annual  contribution  to  that  Board,  of  which 
he  had  been  a  member  for  many  years,  and  a  useful 
member.  Princeton  Seminary  was  very  dear  to  him. 
In  the  general  cause  of  education  he  always  took  a 
special  interest,  and  for  a  very  good  reason.  Like  many 
another  Scotch  youth  who  has  achieved  success  in  life, 
he  had  in  his  early  life  to  fight  hard  for  an  education. 
When  nine  years  of  age  he  was  taken  from  school  and 
set  to  work  at  the  loom  with  his  father  in  his  humble 


FUNERAL  SERVICES.  235 

cottage.  But,  possessed  of  an  unquenchable  thirst  for 
knowledge,  he  had  a  board  fastened  at  his  left  hand  and 
placed  a  book  upon  it,  and  so  read  and  worked  all  day 
long,  sometimes,  often,  from  dawn  until  ten  or  eleven  at 
night.  In  that  way  he  succeeded,  with  a  little  outside 
help,  in  learning  to  read  Latin  and  Greek  with  fluency, 
and  in  preparing  himself  for  what  was  then  his  ambi- 
tion, the  work  of  a  teacher.  Is  it  strange  that  a  boy  of 
that  stamp  grew  into  such  a  man,  and  is  it  strange  that 
through  all  his  life  young  men  struggling  to  get  an 
education  aroused  his  warmest  sympathies,  and  that 
many  a  worthy  youth  was  helped  by  him  to  college 
and  seminary  ?  But  I  cannot  take  time  now  to  speak 
of  the  objects  and  institutions  that  enjoyed  his  wisdom 
and  his  generous  gifts.  Any  good  cause  was  sure  of 
his  sympathy. 

In  this  church  Mr.  Carter's  death  leaves  a  sad  va- 
cancy. For  fifty-eight  years  he  was  an  honored  and 
active  member  of  it.  What  a  record  for  a  man  in  this 
changing  city  life  of  ours!  It  was  in  1831  that  he 
emigrated  from  Scotland,  landing  here  on  the  16th  of 
May  in  that  year.  The  first  Sunday  he  was  in  the 
city  he  asked  in  his  boarding-house  where  he  could 
find  a  Scotch  church.  The  reply  was,  "You  mean  tJie 
Scotch  church ;  that  is  in  Cedar  Street,  and  Dr.  Mc- 
Elroy  is  the  pastor."  He  worshipped  there  that  first 
Sunday,  and  from  that  day  until  his  death  he  remained 
through  all  its  changes  unswervingly  loyal  to  this  old 
church.  I  remember  my  venerable  predecessor  saying 
to  me,  when  I  began  my  pastorate  here,  "  You  will  find 
Eobert  Carter  a  tower  of  strength."  So  indeed  I  did. 
No  minister  could  have  had  a  more  sympathetic  hearer, 
or  a  more  tireless  helper.  He  never  shrank  from  any 
work  for  this  church,  even  though  it  might  be  disagree- 


236         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

able  to  him.  His  judgment  was  always  to  be  relied 
upon,  his  purse  was  always  open,  he  took  an  interest  in 
everything  that  was  going  on ;  he  knew  the  rich  and  the 
poor,  and  he  had  the  confidence  of  both.  How  wonder- 
ful his  prayers  were  I  How  they  used  to  inspire  us  in 
the  prayer  meeting!  He  prayed  like  a  man  who  walked 
continually  with  God.  One  of  the  sweetest  things 
about  him  was  his  love  of  children.  To  the  very  last 
he  was  a  constant  and  always  welcome  visitor  in  the 
Sunday  school,  and  the  children  loved  the  kindly  old 
man  who  talked  to  them  so  earnestly  and  tenderly. 
Yes,  indeed,  he  will  be  missed  here.  This  gap  in  our 
midst  long  years  may  not  fill. 

Many  of  you  know  far  better  than  I  do  what  he  was 
to  the  Presbyterian  Church  at  large,  what  part  he  took 
in  some  of  the  most  important  events  connected  with 
our  Church,  what  a  well  known  figure  he  was  in  many 
a  General  Assembly,  always  listened  to  with  respect, 
beloved  by  everybody  because  of  the  purity  of  his  char- 
acter and  the  wealth  of  his  Christian  service. 

A  few  weeks  ago  an  eminent  English  clergyman  lay 
dying,  and  as  he  neared  his  end  his  mind  began  to 
wander.  He  fancied  himself  back  in  the  church  courts 
or  committees  where  he  had  been  prominent,  and  he  was 
heard  to  whisper  again  and  again,  "  Let  us  discuss  the 
matter  Jcindhj."  AVhen  I  read  those  beautiful  words 
yesterday  I  thought  at  once  of  Robert  Carter,  —  that 
was  the  spirit  he  ever  sought  to  introduce  into  debate 
and  controversy,  —  Let  us  discuss  the  matter  kindly. 

No,  dear  friends,  we  cannot  mourn.  We  sympathize 
with  this  large  company  of  relatives,  children,  grand- 
children, brothers,  who  have  lost  the  centre  around 
which  for  years  they  have  lovingly  gathered,  but  we 
thank  God  for  this  blessed  memory.     We  thank  God 


FCXERAL  SERVICES.  237 

that  he  gave  us  such  a  friend  as  this  for  so  long.  Could 
there  have  been  anything  more  beautiful  than  that  quiet 
falling  asleep  last  Saturday  morning,  with  the  earthly 
work  all  done,  —  well  done  ?  Perhaps  you  may  remem- 
ber these  beautiful  words  of  Lord  Bacon.  "Above  all," 
he  says,  "  believe  it,  the  sweetest  canticle  is  Nunc  di- 
mittis,  when  a  man  hath  attained  worthy  ends  and 
conceptions." 

If  concerning  the  heavenly  reception  of  any  servants 
of  God  on  earth  certainty  be  possible,  then  be  assured 
this  beloved  friend  has  heard  the  wondrous  words, 
"  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant."  He  has  entered 
into  that  ineffable  joy  to  which  they  are  a  prelude.  We 
bless  God  for  what  he  is  enjoying  now,  we  bless  God 
that  through  the  riches  of  Divine  grace  we  may  hope  to 
meet  him  again  in  that  happy  land.  The  years  are 
vanishing  away ;  another  is  all  but  gone  ;  yet  if  we  are 
living  as  forgiven  children  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  we 
may  lift  up  the  voice  of  confidence,  and  rejoice  that  as 
the  years  go  we  too  are  going  home,  —  home  to  God,  to 
Christ,  to  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,  and  to  all 
whom  we  have  loved  long  since  and  lost  awhile. 

ADDRESS. 
Rev.  Dr.  McCosh. 

I  have  been  requested  to  say  a  few  words  in  testi- 
mony, and  they  will  be  very  few.  In  attending  meet- 
ings designed  to  promote  any  good  work  either  at  home 
or  abroad,  I  have  noticed  that  if  Mr.  Carter  was  pres- 
ent, everybody  turned  to  him  at  the  opening  of  the 
meeting  to  lead  us  in  prayer.  "  Out  of  the  abundance  of 
the  heart,  the  mouth  speaketh."  Because  he  spoke  out 
of  the  abundance  of  the  heart,  as  he  was  thus  invited 


238         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

to  conduct  our  devotions,  we  felt  as  though  we  were 
raised  near  to  God,  He  was  near  himself,  and  his 
prayers  seemed,  on  the  one  hand,  as  though  they  came 
from  the  very  depths  of  the  heart,  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  they  were  such  as  would  reach  the  ear  and  heart 
of  God. 

I  often  heard  him  describe  how  he  felt  when  he  left 
his  native  country  to  come  to  America.  He  came  with 
good  recommendations  from  Professor  Pillans,  with 
whom  he  had  studied,  —  a  fine  scholar ;  but  what  was 
more  important,  he  came  trusting  in  God,  and  with 
the  firm  purpose  that  he  would  never  swerve  to  the 
right  nor  to  the  left  from  the  path  of  duty. 

He  was  from  the  first  distinguished  for  great  integrity. 
I  can  testify  to  this  fact.  As  a  publisher  of  many  of 
my  works,  I  found  that  it  was  not  needful  to  make 
bargains  with  him.  I  left  everything  to  his  honor,  and 
found  that  I  could  trust  him  and  trust  him  implicitly. 
And  so  did  everybody ;  the  character  he  bears  in  this 
regard  will  not  soon  be  forgotten  by  those  who  had 
transactions  with  him. 

The  substance  which  through  the  blessing  of  God  he 
was  enabled  to  accumulate,  and  the  great  influence 
which  he  was  permitted  to  exert,  were  always  devoted 
to  good  ends.  Many  a  young  man  might  testify:  "All 
I  have  in  life  I  owe  to  Eobert  Carter.  He  spoke  a  good 
word  to  me.  Perhaps  I  was  falling  into  temptation, 
perhaps  I  was  coming  under  the  influence  of  evil.  He 
spoke  a  good  word  to  me  at  some  crisis  of  my  life ;  per- 
haps he  opened  some  office  or  situation  to  me."  Many 
a  young  man  might  testify  to  that  effect. 

During  his  life  he  was  identified  with  many  good 
causes  in  this  great  city,  and  in  this  respect  he  has  left 
behind  him  a  precious  remembrance. 


FUNERAL  SERVICES.  239 

But  it  was  as  a  publisher  of  books  that  he  was  pre- 
eminent. He  never  published  a  book  which  he  had 
not  read  with  great  care,  nor  one  which  was  likely  to 
injure  any  reader.  The  books  that  he  published  will 
remain  long  after  he  is  gone,  and  will  be  read  by  the 
young  and  will  guide  them  in  the  way,  and  will  be  read 
by  the  old  and  comfort  them  ia  their  declining  years. 

I  want  to  express  my  gratitude  to  God  that  it  was 
through  Eobert  Carter  that  my  works  were  introduced 
into  this  country,  and  that  introducing  them  here  was 
the  means  indirectly  of  bringing  me  to  this  country, 
and  placing  me  in  the  sphere  in  which  my  later  life 
has  passed. 

He  has  left  behind  him  an  example  and  influence  such 
as  few  are  permitted  to  leave,  and  the  remembrance  of 
him  will  cheer  and  solace  us  through  the  remainder  of 
our  days. 

HYMN. 
"Lead,  kindly  Light." 

PRAYER. 
Rev.  T.  L.  Cutler,  D.  D. 

0  Thou  infinite  Jehovah,  who  art  from  everlasting 
to  everlasting,  Thou  art  the  hope  of  Thy  people  in  all 
generations.  With  Thee  there  is  no  beginning  and  no 
end  of  years.  We  adore  Thee  as  our  covenant-keeping 
God.  We  thank  Thee  that  once  more  Thou  hast  ful- 
filled Thy  promise  to  them  that  are  planted  in  the  house 
of  the  Lord,  that  they  shall  flourish  in  the  courts  of  our 
God,  that  they  shall  bring  forth  fruit  in  old  age,  that 
their  boughs  shall  be  green  and  full  of  sap,  that  they 
will  never  be  forsaken,  and  that  whatsoever  they  do 
shall  prosper. 

We  thank  Thee  with  all  our  hearts  for  this  long. 


240         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

happy,  and  holy  life,  and  now  that  our  beloved  brother 
has  returned  unto  his  rest,  we  thank  Thee  that  Thou 
hast  dealt  so  bountifully  with  him.  We  thank  Thee 
for  his  early  Christian  training  in  that  land  hallowed 
by  the  blood  of  Thy  martyrs,  and  for  those  sacred  influ- 
ences which  entered  into  the  very  fibre  of  his  being, 
and  continued  with  him  through  long  years. 

We  thank  Thee  that  Thou  didst  spare  him  so  long  in 
our  midst,  and  didst  permit  him  to  lay  his  hand  to  so 
many  good  works.  We  thank  Thee  that  Thou  didst 
make  him  an  almoner  of  blessings  to  be  scattered  far 
and  wide,  of  leaves  of  the  tree  of  life  for  the  healing 
of  the  nations. 

We  thank  Thee,  O  God,  for  all  Thy  goodness  to  him 
throughout  this  earthly  journey,  and  that  when  he  was 
drawing  near  unto  the  end  Thou  didst  not  leave  him 
nor  forsake  him.  But  we  rejoice  that  during  these  last 
months  Thou  wert  with  him,  that  Thou  didst  give  unto 
him  delightful  intercourse  with  Thee  in  the  land  of 
Beulah,  that  Thou  didst  grant  unto  him  a  foretaste  of 
the  fruits  which  are  exceeding  sweet  to  the  soul,  and 
didst  permit  his  eyes  to  behold  the  blessed  land  not 
very  far  off. 

We  rejoice  in  our  brother's  triumphs  and  testimonies 
for  Christ,  Christ  only,  Christ  his  rock,  Christ  bis  hope, 
Christ  his  everlasting  heritage  and  glory. 

And  now  we  pray  that  Thou  wilt  sanctify  unto  us 
this  departure  of  one  who  is  exceeding  dear  to  us,  and 
we  pray  that  Thou  wilt  hallow  this  dealing  of  Thy 
providence  to  us  all,  and  to  the  many  who  are  with  us 
in  heart,  but  cannot  be  at  this  sacred  service  of  love  this 
morning.  Vouchsafe,  O  gracious  Father,  an  abundant 
blessing  unto  his  children  and  children's  children,  and 
now  that  their  beloved  father  and  mother  are  joined 


FUNERAL  SERVICES.  241 

together  in  heaven,  let  heaven  draw  nearer  and  be 
sweeter  and  dearer  to  them,  and  may  the  very  spirit  of 
heaven,  whither  their  parents  have  gone,  be  in  their 
hearts  and  homes.  Thou  wilt  not  leave  them  lonely, 
for  they  shall  evermore  rejoice  in  his  God,  and  may 
his  name  and  influence  and  holy  example  be  unto 
every  one  of  them  a  precious  and  enduring  inheritance. 

And  we  commend  now  this  morning  those  associated 
with  our  brother  in  labors  of  love  for  the  Master.  We 
commend  unto  Thee  his  associates  in  the  Board  in  which 
for  the  last  half-century  he  has  toiled  and  given  him- 
self without  stint  for  the  advancement  of  the  Master's 
kingdom  and  glory.  While  the  workers  go,  0  Thou 
great  Overseer  of  the  building,  let  the  work  go  on. 
Give  unto  us  another  to  step  into  the  place  made  va- 
cant, to  put  his  hand  to  the  holy  ark  that  is  in  need  of 
such  strong  arms  to  carry  it  forward.  O,  let  not  the 
Church  of  God  suffer,  but  rather  let  it  be  enriched  by  his 
example,  and  may  the  heritage  of  his  influence  and  his 
prayers  go  down  in  abundant  blessings. 

We  commend  unto  Thee  the  pastor  and  members  of 
his  church,  this  society  he  so  much  loved,  and  where 
his  voice  has  been  so  often  heard  in  testimony  for  Thee. 
Let  the  beloved  name  of  our  brother,  his  influence  and 
his  spiritual  power,  remain  in  the  earth,  sweet  as  oint- 
ment poured  forth  and  filling  evermore  the  place  of 
prayer  here  as  with  the  odor  of  God's  own  influence. 

We  commit  unto  Thee  all  Thou  seest  before  Thee, 
many  of  whom  are  worn  with  the  heat  and  burden  of 
the  day.  Let  us  live  looking  over  the  verge,  and  feel 
that  behind  the  veil  is  eternal  life,  and  the  great,  eter- 
nal mighty  harvest.  So  let  us  go  from  this  place 
ennobled,  chastened,  purified,  lifted  up  into  a  new  view 
of  the  glorious  hereafter. 

16 


242  LIFE   OF   ROBERT  CARTER, 

And  now  we  ask  that  Thou  wilt  go  forth  with  these 
beloved  ones  as  they  shall  bear  from  this  his  spiritual 
home  this  body  which  was  so  long  the  temple  of  the 
Holy  Ghost.  May  they  bear  it  tenderly  to  the  narrow 
house  appointed  for  all  living.  We  thank  Thee  that  it 
is  not  a  hard  spot  to  lie  in,  that  the  adorable  Jesus 
made  it  bright  and  pleasant,  that  His  light  has  poured 
into  and  illumined  it,  and  that  Thou  hast  hallowed 
the  place  in  which  the  forms  of  thy  ransomed  and  re- 
deemed shall  slumber.  Guard  the  dust  until  the  hour 
when  Thou  shalt  bid  it  rise  to  be  transformed  into  the 
likeness  of  our  Lord.  Eeturn  these  friends  to  their 
homes,  and  talk  with  them  as  Thou  didst  with  those 
at  Bethany.  Draw  them  close  to  Thee,  and  thus  ever- 
more in  the  blessed  fellowship  with  the  beloved  whom 
Thou  hast  taken. 

Guide  us  all  by  Thy  counsel,  receive  us  all  at  last  to 
the  glories  that  Christ  has  prepared  for  them  that 
love  Him,  be  our  God  and  Guide,  and  when  heart  and 
flesh  fail  us,  give  us,  as  Thou  didst  to  our  brother, 
clear  consciousness,  and  the  eye  single,  and  the  whole 
soul  full  of  love.  Be  Thou  the  strength  of  our  heart 
and  our  portion  forever,  and  give  us  all  a  place  among 
the  followers  of  Him  who  hath  loved  us  and  washed 
us  by  His  blood,  and  hath  made  us  kings  and  priests 
unto  God,  and  the  blessing,  and  honor,  and  glory,  and 
power  be  unto  Him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne, 
world  without  end.     Amen. 

HYMN. 

"Shall  we  gather  at  the  river." 

BENEDICTION. 
Rev.  Dr.  McCosh. 


RESOLUTIONS   OF  SOCIETIES. 


RESOLUTIONS  OF  THE  BOARD  OF  MANAGERS  OF  THE 
AMERICAN  BIBLE   SOCIETY. 

''PHE  Board  of  Managers  of  the  American  Bible  Society 
desire  to  place  on  record  an  expression  of  the  loss  they 
have  sustained  in  the  departure  from  their  midst  of  their 
honored  associate  and  friend,  Mr.  Robert  Carter. 

He  was  elected  a  Manager  on  the  nomination  of  the  Rev. 
Dr.  De  Witt,  in  the  year  1855,  and  in  1878  was  chosen  a 
Vice-President.  From  the  beginning  until  the  end  of  his 
long  service  he  evinced  an  earnest  and  unwearied  interest 
in  the  wide  and  varied  details  of  the  work  of  the  Society. 
To  him  the  Holy  Scriptures  were  the  oracles  of  God.  With 
a  profound  and  abiding  conviction  that  a  personal  knowl- 
edge of  the  truths  which  they  contain  was  as  essential  to 
every  human  being  as  to  himself,  he  viewed  with  devout 
thankfulness  every  movement  that  increased  the  circulation 
of  these  Scriptures,  alike  in  Pagan  and  Christian  lands. 

For  his  fidelity  to  the  trusts  committed  to  him  by  this 
Society ;  for  his  constant  and  useful  labors  in  the  educa- 
tional and  missionary  work  of  the  Church  of  God ;  for  his 
far-reaching  and  enduring  influence  as  a  publisher  of  Chris- 
tian literature ;  for  his  lifelong  example  of  simple  Christian 
living  and  thinking ;  for  his  constant  witness  to  a  good  con- 
fession ;  for  the  full  assurance  of  a  comfortable  hope  in  his 
death,  —  we  would  render  thanks  to  Almighty  God,  into 
whose  presence  he  has  now  entered,  to  go  out  no  more 
forever. 


244  LIFE   OF   EGBERT  CARTER. 

The  Board  of  Managers  direct  that  this  paper  be  placed 
on  the  minutes,  and  published  in  the  "  Bible  Society  Rec- 
ord," and  also  that  a  copy  be  sent  to  the  family  of  Mr. 
Carter. 


RESOLUTIONS  OF  THE  SABBATH  COMMITTEE. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  New  York  Sabbath  Committee 
the  following  minute  was  adopted. 

God  having  called  home  to  Himself  Mr.  Eobert  Carter, 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  New  York  Sabbath  Committee, 
and  the  last  survivor  but  one  of  its  original  members,  the 
Committee  desires  to  record  the  great  respect  and  affection 
with  which  ilr.  Carter  has  always  been  regarded  by  his  asso- 
ciates, our  grateful  recollection  of  the  wise  counsels  and  gen- 
erous contributions  with  which  he  has  unfailingly  sustained 
the  Committee's  work,  and  our  heartfelt  praise  to  God  for 
the  peaceful  end  with  which  the  long  life  of  His  servant  has 
now  been  crowned. 

To  the  family  of  our  late  associate  the  members  of  the 
Committee  express  sincere  sympathy,  commending  them  to 
the  grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  into  whose  presence  he  whose 
loss  they  mourn  has  now  entered. 

It  was  further  resolved  that  the  Committee  attend  the 
funeral  of  Mr.  Carter. 


RESOLUTIONS  OF  THE  BOARD   OF  FOREIGN  MISSIONS. 

The  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  having  received  intelligence 
of  the  death  of  Mr.  Robert  Carter,  one  of  its  members,  a 
special  meeting  was  held  at  the  Mission  House,  December  31, 
1889,  at  which  time  the  following  action  was  taken. 


RESOLUTIONS  OF  SOCIETIES.  245 

The  Board  would  express  its  deep  sense  of  the  great  loss 
which  the  cause  of  Foreign  Missions  has  sustained  in  the 
death  of  one  of  its  oldest  and  most  faithful  members. 

Mr.  Carter  was  appointed  to  this  trust  by  the  General  As- 
sembly in  1843,  and  continued  in  this  relation  till  the  time 
of  his  death.  His  work  as  a  publisher  gave  him  rare  oppor- 
tunities for  promoting  the  general  interest  of  Missions.  The 
early  publications  of  the  Board  were  conducted  by  his  firm, 
involving  much  gratuitous  labor  on  the  part  of  himself  and 
his  family.  In  his  general  work  as  a  publisher,  also,  which 
for  more  than  fifty  years  was  devoted  largely  to  religious 
books,  many  of  which  bore  directly  upon  the  extension  of  the 
cause  of  Christ,  he  constantly  contributed  to  the  growth  of 
a  missionaiy  spirit  both  in  his  own  and  in  other  Christian 
churches.  During  all  his  long  connection  with  the  Board 
he  was  a  faithful  attendant  upon  its  sessions,  ever  ready  to 
assume  his  full  share  of  labor  and  responsibility,  and  never 
failing  as  a  wise  and  judicious  administrator  of  the  work. 
Though  careful  in  his  judgment,  he  was  ever  ready  to  heed 
the  indications  of  Providence,  and  to  advocate  every  wise 
measure  of  progress.  He  was  a  large  contributor  to  the 
funds  of  the  Board  according  to  his  ability,  and  contin- 
ually carried  the  interest  of  its  great  work  upon  his  mind 
and  heart. 

Mr.  Carter  was  pre-eminently  a  man  of  prayer.  His  ear- 
nest and  tender  supplications  for  the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit 
upon  missions  will  long  be  cherished  by  his  associates  as  a 
sacred  and  inspiring  memory.  He  was  peculiarly  courteous, 
genial,  and  kindly  in  all  our  deliberations.  He  seemed  ever 
to  be  prompted  by  the  spirit  of  Christ,  and  to  be  filled  with 
love  for  those  about  him.  Honest  differences  of  opinion 
were  always  regarded  with  forbearance,  and  he  has  left  only 
the  remembrance  of  kind  words  and  acts  through  all  his 
period  of  service.  Even  after  his  health  became  enfeebled, 
and  he  was  able  to  take  but  little  part,  his  presence  con- 
tinued to  be  a  benediction.     The  Board  would  express  its 


246         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

gratitude  to  God  for  so  long  continued  and  eminent  a  ser- 
vice, and  its  son-ow  that  it  has  been  brought  to  a  close.  It 
would  also  express  its  deep  sympathy  with  the  surviving 
members  of  his  bereft  family. 

Engrossed  copies  of  this  Minute  were  ordered  sent  to  the 
family  of  Mr.  Carter  and  to  the  Session  of  the  Scotch  Pres- 
byterian Church  of  this  city,  in  which  he  had  been  a  Ruling 
Elder.  The  Board  also  resolved  to  attend  the  funeral  of 
Mr.  Carter  in  a  body. 

John  Gillespie,  Secretary. 
53  Fifth  Avenue,  New  Yokk. 


OBITUARY  NOTICE. 


THE  secular  and  religious  press  all  over  the  country, 
and  even  across  the  seas,  contained  appreciative 
notices  of  Mr.  Carter's  life  and  character.  None  of  these 
gave  a  truer  idea  of  him  than  the  following,  copied  from 
the  Independent. 

Knowing  that  others  who  have  had  a  far  longer  acquaint- 
ance with  him  than  I  have  will  give  some  account  of  the  long 
Christian  life  just  ended,  I  would  like  to  add  only  a  few  per- 
sonal reminiscences,  not  telling  of  the  things  he  did,  except 
as  showing  what  manner  of  man  he  was. 

Becoming  acquainted  with  him  only  as  he  was  nearing 
his  threescore  years  and  ten,  I  remember  being  attracted 
first  by  his  positive,  crisp  conversation,  with  the  strong 
Scotch  utterance.  But  I  am  sure  that  my  love  first  went 
out  toward  him  when  noticing  his  loyal,  almost  lover-like 
tlioughtfulness  for  the  sweet-faced,  gray-haired  wife  who  was 
always  with  him,  in  doors  or  out.  How  well  I  recollect  one 
morning  when  we  were  awaiting  news  from  an  old  lady  friend 
who  was  very  ill.  One  of  Mr.  Carter's  grandchildren  had 
started  for  the  post-office  the  minute  the  mail  was  due,  and 
the  dear  old  couple  sat  hand  in  hand  by  the  window,  eagerly 
awaiting  his  return.  When  the  letter  came,  and  was  read 
aloud,  announcing  the  friend's  convalescence,  the  two  gray 
heads  bent  toward  each  other  with  a  kiss  of  thanksgiving, 
and  an  earnest  "  Thank  God."  It  was  characteristic  not  only 
of  their  oneness  of  sympathy  with  each  other,  but  their  deep 


248  LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

affection  for  absent  friends.  Months  afterward  a  friend  across 
the  water  alluded  to  this  incident  as  "  an  object  lesson  in  the 
art  of  growing  old  gracefully."  So  habitual  was  it  for  the 
old  couple  to  need  each  other's  presence  at  all  times,  to  refer 
to  each  other,  even  to  wait  for  each  other  in  coming  in  to 
their  meals,  that  the  night  after  his  wife  had  suddenly  but 
gently  passed  into  glory  he  went  up-stairs  when  the  family 
were  summoned  to  tea,  and  came  down  again  alone,  saying 
sadly,  "I  almost  forgot ;  I  was  going  for  your  mother." 

Friends  will  mention  concerning  Robert  Carter  that  he 
was  for  fifty  years  a  member  of  the  Foreign  Mission  Board  ; 
for  nearly  as  many  a  director  of  the  Bible  Society;  seventeen 
times  a  delegate  to  the  General  Assembly ;  for  sixty-eight 
years  an  active  member  of  the  church,  most  of  that  time, 
indeed,  a  teacher,  Sunday  school  superintendent,  and  elder 
in  the  church ;  but  the  mere  statements  do  not  carry  the 
story  of  the  deep  religious  life,  and  the  steady  good  judgment 
in  church  matters,  which  was  the  reason  for  his  occupying 
such  positions.  To  "make  sure  he  was  right,  and  then  go 
ahead,"  was  his  habit.  He  was  not  afraid  of  responsibility, 
neither  was  he  afraid  of  the  hard  work  which  justified  his 
claim  to  be  trusted  with  it.  The  same  set  of  principles  were 
in  steady  use  in  business,  in  church,  and  in  home  life.  He 
never  knew  any  antagonism  between  business  and  Christian 
living.  His  business  success  gave  weight  to  his  opinions  in 
benevolent  enterprises,  and  his  connection  with  mission  and 
Bible  work  gave  character  to  his  business ;  and  if  in  his  home 
life  there  was  more  of  the  afiectionate  and  tender  solicitude 
of  the  husband,  the  father,  and  the  grandfather,  he  was  still 
the  same  man  that  he  was  in  the  store,  —  alert,  straight- 
forward, and  kindly. 

Most  emphatically  was  he  the  "  head  of  the  family  "  up 
to  the  last  year  of  his  long  life.  Not  often  is  a  man  of 
eighty-two  looked  up  to  for  advice,  depended  upon  for  coun- 
sel by  the  whole  family  connection,  as  he  was.  The  grand- 
children, as  they  chose  their  life-work,  or  settled  in  homes 


OBITUARY  NOTICE.  249 

of  their  own,  were  guided  by  his  good  judgment.  One  grand- 
son, just  entering  on  his  first  pastorate,  another  practising 
law,  another  lately  married,  each  felt  unwilling  to  make  im- 
portant decisions  until  sure  of  Grandfather's  approval ;  and 
to  say  "  Grandfather  thinks  it  best"  was  an  argument  not  to 
be  gainsaid.  Through  many  temptations  at  school  and  at 
college^  Grandfather's  strongly  expressed  convictions  formed 
a  barrier  of  safety  to  the  young  people.  His  strict  integrity 
was  a  stronghold  of  power.  One  of  his  sons,  in  some  busi- 
ness transaction  involving  the  transfer  of  some  considerable 
sum,  expressed  surprise  at  no  security  being  required  by  the 
banker  who  was  party  to  the  transaction.  "  Ah  !  "  said  the 
banker,  "  if  I  could  not  give  you  ten  thousand  dollars  on 
the  simple  word  of  your  father,  I  would  go  out  of  business !  " 
Well  it  is  for  us  that  there  are  men  in  our  community  whose 
steadfast  uprightness  is  a  lesson  to  a  younger  generation. 
Let  us  thank  God  for  such  names,  —  names  which  are  synon- 
ymous with  unflinching  integrity.  Happy  all  children  and 
grandchildren  who  bear  the  heritage  of  such  a  name !  In 
the  parishes  of  his  sons  and  son-in-law  he  had  many  warm 
friends.  Long  will  the  people  remember,  in  a  prayer  meet- 
ing in  Boonton,  New  Jersey,  (the  home  of  his  eldest  son,)  the 
reading  by  Mr.  Carter  of  the  first  chapter  of  John's  Gospel  in 
a  Scotch  version.  It  was  published  in  the  "  Sunday  School 
Times  "  of  February  4,  1 888,  and  Mr.  Carter  had  cut  it  out 
and  carried  it  in  his  pocket-book.  Never  before  had  the 
chapter  seemed  so  full  of  tender  and  marvellous  sweetness 
as  when  our  Scotch  friend  read  it  in  the  accents  of  his  child- 
hood. I  never  think  of  Nathanael  but  I  seem  to  hear  him 
called  the  "  leal  heartit  Israelite  wi'  nae  gviile  in  him,"  and 
the  verse,  "  But  as  mony  as  took  him  till  them,  to  them  gied 
he  richt  to  be  God's  bairns,"  holds  a  sweeter  meaning  than 
ever  before. 

It  was  in  this  church  that  his  voice  was  last  heard  in 
public.  The  occasion  was  one  of  a  series  of  praise  services, 
when  pastor  and  choir  united  in  giving  expression  to  the 


250         LIFE  OF  ROBERT  CARTER. 

life  and  singing  the  hymns  of  certain  hymn  writers.  Bonar 
and  McCheyne  were  under  consideration  that  evening,  and 
Robert  Carter  gave  some  account  of  Horatius  Bonar  from 
personal  reminiscences.  His  closing  words,  referring  to  his 
friend,  were,  "  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of 
glory."  Both  have  entered  into  rest  since  that  Sabbath  in 
June,  and  it  is  theirs  to  wear  to-day  the  crown  of  glory  that 
fadeth  not  away,  and  they  praise  Him  forevermore. 


THE   END, 


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